WASHINGTON (April 28, 2024) – Howard University softball closed out the regular season with a doubleheader sweep Sunday afternoon against the Norfolk State (NSU) Spartans at Nats Youth Academy.
With the victories, HU (32-11, 16-5 MEAC) secured the series sweep against NSU while locking up the No. 2 seed going into the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Tournament.
Between games, head coach
Tori Tyson and the squad recognized three Bison for their hard work and dedication to the program:
Sydni Jones (Whittier, Calif.);
Ari Whatley (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and
Bianca Worthy (Goodyear, Ariz.).
HOWARD 4, NORFOLK STATE 2
After registering a program-best 29 runs Saturday (April 27), the Bison found themselves in a tightly contested bout on ESPN+.
NSU's pitching staff rebounded from Saturday's dreadful performance, holding Howard to only five hits in the opener.
Aniyah Michalak got Norfolk State on the board first, thanks to a wild pitch in the opening frame, 1-0.
From that point, NSU's Kailey Bryant and junior
Jordin King (Pomona, Calif.) tossed three consecutive scoreless innings until the fifth where Norfolk State extended its lead, scoring on a throwing error, 2-0.
Bottom five, junior
Sidney Fletcher (Whittier, Calif.) led the Bison rally with a leadoff solo homer to right center, 2-1. Later that inning, junior
Kenna Higa (Honolulu) tied the contest, 2-2, with a sac fly, bringing home sophomore
Amelia Weber (Montclair, Calif.). Moments later, third-year Bison
Alyssa Vasquez (Eastvale, Calif.) delivered the go-ahead score with an RBI-single up-the-middle, 3-2.
Next inning, freshman standout
Merci Hart (Los Angeles) added an insurance run with an RBI-single in the sixth, 4-2.
NSU rallied in the seventh to put the tying run on first, but King came back into the contest to pickup a two-out save, thanks to a game-ending double play.
Sophomore
Julia Holt (Tucson, Ariz.) grabbed the victory in relief, tossing 1.2 innings with three Ks, while King secured her first career save as a Bison.
HOWARD 12, NORFOLK STATE 4 (f/6)
HU manufactured 12 runs on 21 hits, led by junior
Lealani Ricks (Madera, Calif.) going a perfect 4-of-4 on the afternoon.
Howard jumped out to an early 2-0 advantage after one with RBI-singles from Fletcher and newcomer
Cheyenne Castille (Eastvale, Calif.).
Next inning, the Bison doubled its lead, 4-0, before NSU got on the board with an RBI-single from Rylie Gilbreath, 4-1, in the third. Howard answered with another run in the bottom half to push the margin back to four after three frames, 5-1.
Norfolk State refused to go away, scoring in the fourth and fifth innings while trimming the deficit down to one, 5-4.
Bottom five, HU regained the momentum with a pair of runs while taking a 7-4 advantage into the sixth.
Howard caught fire in the sixth, scoring five times on seven hits, and finished the contest early after Higa's game-ending RBI-single to left center.
Weber registered her 12
th victory in the circle, throwing four innings with two strikeouts.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
On May 8-11, HU goes to Norfolk, Va., for the MEAC Tournament, held on the campus of NSU.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at
www.HUBison.com.
