NORFOLK, Va. – On a rain-soaked Sunday morning, the Norfolk State baseball team fell 12-8 against Merrimack to conclude the series between the programs.
 
Sunday's game went eight innings, ending prematurely due to inclement weather.
 
For the second game in a row, Merrimack struck first with a solo home run in the first inning. The Warriors hit another bomb in the second inning, a two-run shot to left centerfield giving the visiting team a 3-0 lead.
 
Raphael Rodriguez put Norfolk State on the board with a solo homer to right field in the third inning. The Spartans added another run in the fourth, as Collin Curry drove in Justin Journette with a single.
 
Merrimack regained control in the fifth inning, scoring seven runs on two hits. Norfolk State didn't record its first out until the sixth at-bat of the frame, struggling to find the strike zone in the wet conditions.
 
The Spartans continued to fight, starting with an RBI single from Jalan Jones. A few pitches later, Journette demolished a pitch to left field for a two-run bomb, cutting the deficit to 10-5.
 
After relief pitcher Mac Yarbrough got out of the sixth inning unscathed, the Spartans kept the rally going. Brendan Burke produced a leadoff home run, before Jones and Curry got two more runners across the plate.
 
The burst pulled the Spartans within two, but Merrimack added two runs in the seventh inning on a single and wild pitch. After Norfolk State came up empty in the seventh and eighth frames, the game came to a halt.
 
 
UP NEXT
 
After playing eight consecutive games at home, the Spartans hit the road to face Richmond on Tuesday. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Pitt Field.
 
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