BALTIMORE, MD (April 21, 2024)--Morgan State completed a three-game series sweep of its Beltway rival Howard on Sunday afternoon with a 2-1 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) victory in the finale on Sunday afternoon to Lois T. Murray Field.
 
With the series win, the Lady Bears moved into sole possession of first place in the league standings over the weekend and are now a win away from winning the MEAC regular season title outright.
 
Morgan State will close out the MEAC slate at home against rival Coppin State (April 27-28).
 
The Lady Bears (28-15 overall, 16-2 MEAC) recorded the first three-game series sweep by either team since Morgan did it in back-to-back seasons in 2017 and 2018. Howard fell to 29-11, 13-5 MEAC.
 
"We were focused," said Morgan State head coach Larry Hineline. "We've spent these past several days practicing against Howard. Howard does some things that we knew were stronger and Howard had every ounce of our attention this week during practice."
 
"Being that both teams were tied for first place in the MEAC, this game was a glimpse of who would be the conference champs and how the MEAC tournament would play out," added Hineline. "We're not done yet. We have to beat Coppin State two out of three next week and the adventure is still going on and we want to be the number one seed."
 
"Coming into the game we just knew that we had to stay composed and not let whatever they had going on get us too riled up and just keep playing our own game," said senior outfielder Mia Ewell. "Backing each other up if someone makes a mistake and picking them up right away and letting each other know we got each other's back and we can win this game easily."
 
After a scoreless first inning, the Lady Bears were able to get on the board with a two-run double by Ky'Anah Lake to give Morgan State a 2-0 advantage after two innings.
 
Morgan's lead would hold up until the seventh inning when Howard got back-to-back one out doubles by Merci Hart and Amelia Weber, to cut the deficit to 2-1.
 
Reigning MEAC Pitcher of the Week, Victoria Fletcher would be relieved by Emily Raubuch, who finished out the game getting Kelsie Jarrett to ground out to second and Weber to fly out to right field to secure the win for Morgan and record her fourth save of the season.
 
Fletcher, who would get the win to improve to 6-3, finished the day going 6.1 innings allowing one run on four hits and striking out three batters.
 
"It's great having a big pitching save when you are able to have someone come in behind you when getting in trouble late in the game," said Fletcher on Raubuch relieving her. "Once you start throwing those long innings, having her come in and seeing new pitches. She's a different pitcher then me and she gets out of situations way quicker then me. She's the best pressure pitcher I've ever seen,"
 
The Lady Bears are back on the field on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, when they close out their non-conference schedule on the road against George Washington. First pitch is at 3 p.m. at the GW Softball 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.