BALTIMORE, Md. (March 20, 2022)-Morgan State completed a three-game series sweep of rival Coppin State on Sunday, with a 7-6 victory in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) game at Lois T. Murray Field.
 
It was the Lady Bears' sixth straight MEAC series win dating back to the 2019 season. Morgan State, winners of four straight, improved to 10-8, 3-0 in the MEAC, while Coppin State fell to 0-19, 0-3 on the season.
 
Trailing 5-4, Morgan State graduate player Tayven Rousseau stepped to the plate in the bottom of the fourth inning with bases loaded and two outs. Rousseau would clear the bases with a double to center field, driving in three runs to give the hosts a 7-5 lead, which proved to be the difference.
 
The Lady Bears jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first when Asia Thomas singled up the middle to score Aliya Ewell. Thomas would later score the second run on a ball hit to shortstop by Madison Nunez.
 
After Coppin State got a run back in the second to pull within 2-1, Morgan State scored two more in the bottom half of the second. Mia Ewell doubled to left center to score Katariina Delph and Melissa Paz doubled to right center to bring in Mia Ewell, as Morgan State took a 4-1 lead.
 
Again, Coppin would respond, this time erupting for four runs in the top third. Vanessa Carrizosa singled through the left side to score Desiree Carrizosa, cutting the Morgan lead in half at 4-2. After Vanessa Carrizosa scored on a fielding error, Brissa Alvarado scored the tying run when Shawnee Ronyak reached on a fielder's choice.
 
Morgan State put together what would be its comeback inning, when it scored three runs in the bottom of the fourth. The inning began with Coppin State pitcher Vanessa Carrizosa retiring the first two Morgan batters she faced. Aliyah Ewell got it going with a single to right field and Paz walked on four pitches. Thomas stepped in and also walked on four pitches to load the bases for Rousseau's heroics.
 
The Eagles would score their final run of the game in the seventh when Brissa Alvarado drove in Alexis Genovese to make it a 7-6 game. Anaya Hunte then got Coppin's next two batters to fly out and pop up, respectively, to end the game.
 
Hunte, who pitched four innings of relief, got the win for Morgan State. Hunte allowed one run on three hits and totaled two strikeouts to improve to 7-2 on the season. Starting pitcher Victoria Fletcher recorded three strikeouts in three innings of work.
 
Rousseau went 2-for-2 at the plate with a walk and a game-high 3RBIs to lead the Lady Bears. Paz was 2-for-3 with a run, RBI and a walk, while Aliya Ewell finished 2-for-4 with two runs. Thomas was 1-for-3 with two runs, a walk and RBI.
 
Coppin was led by Isabella Zalba who was 2-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored. Ronyak recorded two hits and has a RBI, while Vanessa Carrizosa finished 2-for-4 with a run and RBI. Vanessa Carrizosa also struck out a game-high five batters in the loss.  
 
The Lady Bears will wrap up their five-game homestand on Tuesday, March 22 when they return to non-conference action to host Siena in a doubleheader. First pitch is at 1 p.m. at Lois T. Murray Field.
  Read Full Article