NORFOLK, Va. (May 11, 2023)--Maryland Eastern Shore capitalized on eight errors by No. 1 seed Morgan State and scored nine runs, all in the top of the fourth, on its way to an 11-7 win over the 2023 regular-season champions on Thursday in the first elimination game of the day at the 2023 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Softball Championship at NSU Softball Field. 
 
The sixth-seeded Hawks advanced to Friday's 12 p.m. elimination bracket contest against the winner of the Howard vs. Norfolk State game that will be played at 3 p.m. Morgan State was eliminated from the tournament. 

The Hawks plated a run in the top of the third to take an early 1-0 lead when Ryan Merriwether scored on a double by Jaycee Holt. 

Morgan State answered by scoring two runs in the bottom of the third frame. Mia Ewell scored on the double to center-field, then Chandler Mitchell scored on a groundout by Melissa Paz.  

Maryland Eastern Shore exploded in the fourth, scoring nine runs on four hits and eight Morgan State errors as the Hawks took a 10-2 lead and never looked back. Kelsie Ekstrom, McKenzie Abiley, Ameenah Bellenger, Kiyaira Hicks, Merriwether, Ah-Nayia Oglesby and Nola Mountain all scored at least once in the top half of the fourth. 

UMES added another run in the fifth to take an 11-2 lead on a single through the left side by Oglesby that scored Hicks. 
 
The Bears would try to mount a comeback by scoring two runs in the fifth and then three in the sixth to make the score 11-7 heading into the bottom of the seventh. Ky'Anah Lake highlighted the scoring with a home run to center, and Mia Ewell had an RBI double in the sixth.  
 
But that was all the scoring the Bears could muster, as they end tournament play (24-21).
 
Holt and Oglesby each had two hits for UMES, while Holt and Abiley led the way with two RBIs each. Ballenger went the distance in the circle, striking out five.
 
Morgan State was led by Ewell, who went 4-for-4 with a game-high three runs and a RBI. Starting pitcher Victoria Fletcher went 2-for-2 with 2RBI and a walk, while Paz was 2-for-4 and 2RBI.
 
 
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.