CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Senior
Hunter Halford drove in the winning run in the bottom of the seventh to give the Norfolk State softball team a 5-4 walk-off victory over Buffalo on Friday afternoon.
NSU rallied in its first game of the Cavalier Classic hosted by the University of Virginia at The Park. The Spartans were down 4-1 heading into the bottom of the fifth before plating two in the inning, one more in the sixth and then the game-ending run in the seventh. NSU improved to 4-6 with its third straight win.
The Spartans loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh with no outs, getting a pinch hit single from freshman
Makenna Heimann, and infield single off the bat of senior
Kylee Lopez and a walk to put three runners on. Buffalo (1-10) got the first out of the frame on a force at home, but Halford delivered with a hit to right to score Lopez.
Lopez hit 3-for-3 in the game with two RBI, both coming in the fifth on a one-out single. Freshman
Alison Guckin and junior
Shelby DesChamps each singled to start the inning, and Lopez lined one back through the middle to make it 4-3.
Freshman
Denisha Megginson hit an RBI single in the sixth to tie the score, scoring sophomore
Jade Dixon after she reached base with two outs on a hit by pitch.
Sophomore
Tuli Iosefa hit a sac fly in the third to score DesChamps for the first run of the game for the Spartans. The Bulls scored single runs in the first and second innings and two more in the top of the fifth on a two-run homer from Catrell Robertson.
DesChamps hit 2-for-3 with two runs, and both Heimann and sophomore
Jazzmaine Hammond each had two hits as well. NSU finished with 12 hits on the afternoon.
Senior
Shannon Buffington (1-1) earned the win after allowing just one hit in two innings of relief.
Lace Smith (0-4) took the loss for Buffalo, giving up five hits and two earned runs in six innings of relief as well. Robertson had two of the team's six hits with three RBI.
The Spartans will face Buffalo again on Saturday as well as Delaware during the second day of the tournament.