Morgan State University Athletics

Box Score


BALTIMORE, Md. (April 21, 2013)-The Morgan State softball team sent its seniors out in style on Sunday afternoon for their final home doubleheader by doing something it hadn't done in 10 years – sweep Howard in a doubleheader.
 
The Lady Bears followed their 8-0 victory in five innings in Game 1, by handing the Lady Bison another 8-0 loss, this time in six innings to complete the sweep over Howard in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) North Division contest at Lois T. Murray Field.
 
The two teams are scheduled to make-up the third and final game of this series on Wednesday, May 1 at 5 p.m. at Lois T. Murray Field.
 
Sunday's sweep of Howard marked the first time since April 27, 2003 that Morgan State has swept Howard in a doubleheader. It was also the first doubleheader sweep for Morgan State since defeating the University of Maryland Eastern Shore in a doubleheader on April 28, 2012, which was also the last time the Lady Bears had a three-game winning streak.
 
“It was an important game on many levels,” said senior Danielle Lugo, who finished 2-for-4 with 2RBI on 'Senior Day'. “Senior game means family out of town is there to see the games, our last weekend of home field advantage and they were important games to clinch for a chance to go to Florida for the MEAC Tournament. The pressure was on to have a great weekend of games.”
 
Fellow senior Shanice Crowder also made the most of her Senior Day, going 2-for-3 with a run scored and 2RBI. Sophomore Zina Constancia chipped in with a 2-for-3 performance and junior Shareday Christina drove in 2RBI in the win.
 
The Lady Bears (5-31, 2-9 MEAC) broke a scoreless game in the bottom of the fourth inning when Kimberly Fontaine doubled down the left line to score Taylor McDougall. Nichole Holguin grounded out to first, which scored Earan Williams and Crowder followed with a singled through the right side to score Fontaine, giving the hosts a 3-0 lead.
 
Morgan State went back to work in the sixth inning to score five more runs to end the game on the eight-run rule. Crowder led the scoring with a bases loaded single to left center to bring Constancia across the plate. Christina then singled up the middle to score Fontaine and Holguin for two more runs to extend the cushion to 6-0. Lugo then ended the game with a two-run single to right field, scoring Crowder and Christina for the eight-run victory.
 
“It was the first time that my mom saw me play at Morgan State,” said Lugo, whose mom made the trip to Baltimore from California. “I'm thankful that she was able to come for the senior game after 16 years of softball that her and my dad had supported me through. It was always a goal to have my parents see me play at the division I level, and to have my mom come at the end of my softball career and finally get to see me play is bittersweet.”
 
Jordan Eades picked up the win for the Lady Bears to improve to 3-13 on the season. Eades, who also pitched the Game 1 win over Howard, pitched all six innings and recorded a game-high seven strikeouts.
 
Morgan State, which now sits in sixth-place in the north division, will look to extend its three-game winning streak, when it travels to Princess Anne, Md. this weekend (April 27-28) to face Maryland Eastern Shore in a three-game series. The Lady Hawks currently sit in fifth-place in the league standings. Only the top four teams advance to the MEAC championship. Coppin State, which holds the fourth spot, will host Morgan State in the season-finale on May 4-5 at Coppin State Field.