Morgan State University Athletics

BOWIE, Md. (April 28, 2026)--Morgan State wrapped up the regular season on Tuesday afternoon with a non-conference doubleheader on the road against Bowie State at the BSU Softball Complex. The Lady Bears would win both games 4-2 and 14-4 in five innings.

The doubleheader series marked the first time that Maryland's two oldest Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Bowie State (1865) and Morgan State (1867) met on Bowie's home field in the series' 10 meetings, all won by the Lady Bears.
 
It was the first meeting since the 2024 season opener when Morgan State swept the doubleheader 6-1 and 9-1 in five innings in Baltimore.
 
With the wins, Morgan State (14-26, 9-12 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference), closed out the regular season winning five straight games. The Lady Bears will enter next week's MEAC softball championship (May 6-9) as the No. 5 seed and will face host Norfolk State, the fourth seed in the opening round on Wednesday, May 6 at 2 p.m. at NSU Softball Field in Norfolk, Va.
 
The Division II Bulldogs (17-19, 12-0 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association), who are the three-time reigning CIAA champions, had their two-game winning streak come to an end. Bowie State has two conference doubleheaders remaining and will look to close out their regular season going unbeaten in CIAA play for the second consecutive season.
 
Game 1
Morgan State jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning. Millie Cousins singled to left field to bring home Cassie White. A wild pitch then allowed Olivia Garner to score the second run of the inning and Cousins finally scored on Hunter Newman's sacrifice fly hit to left field.
 
The score would remain that way until the bottom of the fourth, when Nala Bain doubled through the left side, scoring Samiyah Abdul-Khabir and Sydney Seals to cut Morgan State's advantage to a run at 3-2.
 
The Lady Bears added an insurance run in the seventh when Gianna Ettore's sacrifice fly to right field scored Olivia Pagano for the 4-2 lead.
 
Bowie State would make it interesting in the bottom half of the inning, as the Bulldogs would load the bases with no outs. Morgan State's Serena Rodriguez would get out the jam, getting Bain to pop up for the first out, before getting the next two batters to strike out swinging to end the game.
 
Cousins got the win for Morgan State and improved to 9-10 in the circle, while Seals dropped to 10-6 for Bowie State.
 
Cousins tossed four strikeouts in 4.0 innings, while Rodriguez threw six strikeouts in 3.0 innings of relief. Seals pitched a complete game and recorded a game-high seven strikeouts.
 
Pagano recorded a team-high two hits, including a triple and a run scored to lead Morgan. Bowie State was led by Seals, who went 3-for-3 at the plate with two doubles, a run and a walk.
 
Game 2
Morgan State would score 14 runs on 13 hits in the nightcap against Bowie State. Just like in the opening game, the Lady Bears again scored three runs in the first inning. Olivia Pagano got the scoring started with a triple through the right side to bring home two runs.
 
The Lady Bears increased their lead to 7-0 with four more runs in the second inning. Olivia Garner doubled up the middle to score two runs to make it 5-0. Hunter Newman's sacrifice fly to center field scored Garner and Millie Cousins scored when Pagano reached base on an error to up the lead to 7-0.
 
Bowie State began to chip away at the Lady Bears' lead, scoring four runs in the bottom of the second. The Bulldogs loaded the bases and back-to-back walks by Adrianna Dockett and Ja'chelle Mosley gave the hosts its first two runs. Taylor Dawkins later doubled through the left side with bases still loaded to cut the deficit to 7-4.
 
Morgan State added two more runs in the third, before erupting for five more runs on five hits in the top fifth. Gianna Ettore singled up the middle to score two runs and Denver Obermeyer ended the scoring when she scored on a passed ball for the Lady Bears' 14^th run.
 
Serena Rodriguez got the win for Morgan State and improved to 5-11 on the season. Bowie State's Aaliyah Amos tossed a game-high three strikeout and was charged with the loss and dropped to 5-7.
 
Dejah Jones led the Lady Bears with three hits and two runs. Nia Lewis had two hits and two runs, while Pagano and Garner each had two hits and tallied a game-high 3 RBIs.
 
Morgan State will now prepare to face the Spartans of Norfolk State on Wednesday, May 6 at 2 p.m. in the opening round of the MEAC softball championship at NSU Softball Field in Norfolk, Va.
 
 
FOLLOW MORGAN STATE ATHLETICS IN CYBERSPACE 
There are many ways to keep up with MSU athletics online and on the go:
• Visit www.morganstatebears.com, the official web site of Bear athletics, for news, schedules, stats, bios and more. 
• Follow us on social media:
 Facebook: /MorganStateBears
 Twitter: @MorganStBears
 Instagram: /MorganStateBears
 
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.