WASHINGTON (April 5, 2023) - Howard Softball returns for a three-game series against North Carolina Central (NCCU) during Easter weekend, with a doubleheader starting 1 p.m., Friday (April 7) at the Nationals Youth Academy in D.C.
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MATCHUP PREVIEW
The Lady Bison hold a 10-6 record against NCCU, going back to 2007. Howard is currently on a seven-game winning streak against the Eagles but has never achieved a victory at home.
HOWARD
Howard 10-18 (3-4 MEAC) is competing against NCCU for the first time this season. Howard is the defending MEAC Champion, but the team has started the season off on a slow note, which they are hoping to correct with this series.
MEAC Preseason Player of the Year graduate
Kalita Dennis (Elk Grove, Calif.) came up big for the Bison in their 7-5 victory against Morgan State, hitting 2-of-4 from the plate while driving in three runs and scoring once in the come-from-behind win.
Sophomore lefty
Mia Gonzales (Atwater, Calif.) picked up the win in relief, striking out five and only walking one in six innings. The MEAC Preseason All-Conference Second Team honoree has a 3.88 ERA this season.
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL
North Carolina Central 10-22 (8-0 MEAC) just swept Delaware State in a three-game series last weekend with a combined 32-7 score across all three games.
The Eagles had three players named to MEAC Preseason All-Conference Teams, with juniors Hailey Batista (Mebane, N.C.), Maegan Garrison (Harrisburg, N.C.) and Jaylah Barr (Batesburg-Leesville, S.C.) all being named to the First Team.
NCCU has a plethora of players in the top-5 in stats in the conference, with Garrison leading the MEAC in RBIs (29) and second in home runs (6). Freshman Makiya Graves (Mebane, N.C.) leads the conference in hits (43) and runs scored (21). Redshirt junior Ivory Jones (Douglasville, Ga.) is in the top-5 in OPS, RBIs, runs scored and slugging, while leading the conference in home runs (8) this season.
LAST TIME OUT
Sunday (April 2), the Bison split Sunday afternoon's doubleheader against Morgan State, winning game one, 7-5, before narrowly dropping game two, 5-4.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Once the Lady Bison are through with the Eagles, they will face Coppin State in a matchup that was originally scheduled for March 26. They will travel to Baltimore Thursday, April 13, with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at
www.HUBison.com.
