NORFOLK, Va. – Binghamton rallied with four runs in the top of the seventh, and the Bearcats held on for a 5-4 win over the Norfolk State softball team on Friday evening at the NSU Softball Field.
 
Rain shortened the first day of the Pirate Invitational to just two games from its original schedule of five. In the second game of the day, the Spartans scored two runs in the sixth to take a two-run lead, and they were one out away from a win in the seventh. But the Bearcats tied it up with a two-run homer and then scored two more for a two-run edge.
 
Binghamton (2-10) finished with 12 hits on the evening, and four players had two each. Junior Jade Dixon went 3-for-3 with two RBI for the Spartans (5-9).
 
She hit a solo homer in the third after the Bearcats had scored in the top of the inning. Tied at 1-1, NSU took the lead in the sixth with a pair of runs. Two infield singles got things started, and junior Jazzmaine Hammond dropped one in front of the diving right fielder to score senior Shelby DesChamps.
 
Sophomore Gabby Vaughan hit a sac fly to left for a 3-1 score. But Binghamton's Rozlyn Price hit a two-run homer to right with two outs in the seventh to tie the score. A single and a double were followed by a two-run single from Sara Herskowitz to make it 5-3.
 
Dixon made it 5-4 in the bottom of the seventh with an infield single to short, but she was later called for interference for the final out of the game.
 
Morgan Bienkowski (1-4) struck out nine and allowed all four runs in seven innings. Junior Skylar Swain (2-4) gave up five runs, four earned, in all seven innings for the Spartans.
 
NSU will play two more games on Saturday, beginning with Saint Peter's at 4 p.m. followed by Delaware.