BALTIMORE, Md. (April 12, 2024)--The Morgan State softball program will make history this weekend when it travels to Virginia's Tidewater area to take on Norfolk State in a three-game Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) series.
 
Morgan State (21-14, 10-2 MEAC) and the host Spartans (4-33, 3-9 MEAC) will get underway with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 13 beginning at noon, which will air live on ESPNU. It will be the first time in school history that Morgan State will play in the MEAC's regular season ESPNU softball contest.
 
Game 2, which will not be on television, is scheduled for 3 p.m. with the series wrapping up on Sunday with a single game at noon. All three games will be played at NSU Softball Field.
 
"It means a lot that softball as a sport is finally getting the attention it deserves. And for Morgan to be on ESPNU is a huge step for not only women athletes, but black women athletes," said Morgan State graduate player Victoria Fletcher. "This will allow HBCU athletics to grow immensely. It's important to me to keep growing the game that's a big reason why I love coaching."
 
"The team's definitely excited, I'd say it's exciting being a fifth-year to see how excited the freshman were this whole week of getting the chance to play on ESPN this coming weekend," said fellow Morgan State graduate player Melissa Paz. "For us upperclassmen, this may not be our first time [playing on live television], but we are extremely excited, especially being that it is Morgan's first MEAC [regular season] ESPNU TV game."
 
Morgan State enters the series winners of five of its last six games, including a 4-3 win over North Carolina Central in its last outing (4/7). The win allowed the Lady Bears to claim two of the three games to win the series.
 
The Lady Bears have won five straight MEAC series and haven't lost in their last six league series dating back to last season (went 1-1 against South Carolina State). Their last league series loss came at the hands of Maryland Eastern Shore, which claimed two victories last season, sweeping the doubleheader (4/15/23).
 
The Spartans, who were picked to finish fourth in the MEAC Preseason poll, are coming off a 5-3 loss at Maryland Eastern Shore (4/7) in the series finale to drop the series.
 
Norfolk State has dropped eight of its last 10 contests and sports a 2-21 record at home.
 
"This is definitely not the same Norfolk team that they've had in recent years," said Paz. "I think it's very important that we come out of this weekend with another sweep, but taking each game one at a time."
 
"We need to start off strong from the first at bat to the last and defense needs to be solid all the way through the last game Sunday. Putting on a 3-0 weekend would allow for great momentum moving into next weekend's series against Howard."
 
This weekend's return to NSU Softball Field, will be the team's first since last season's stunning MEAC Tournament exit. The top-seeded Lady Bears would only play two games, falling 2-1 in the opener to rival Coppin State, the fifth-seed, before being eliminated by No. 6 Maryland Eastern Shore, 11-7.
 
"It's always nice to feel like you have the upper hand in the tournament. We get to experience their field three weeks before the tournament without the pressure of being in the tournament," said Fletcher. "Norfolk's field is very different from ours. It is great to be able to come down and get the new people acclimated to their field."

 
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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.