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VIDEO: Series Wrap-up with NCCU Sports Network


DURHAM, N.C. (www.NCCUEaglePride.com) – Behind the stellar pitching of Michael Romano (Spotsylvania, Va.), timely defense and hitting, the North Carolina Central University baseball team earned a crucial 10-5 series-clinching victory over arch-rival North Carolina A&T on Sunday afternoon at the historic Durham Athletic Park to move into sole possession of second place in the MEAC’s (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) Southern Division.
 
In the rubber match between the two rivals, the Aggies plated the first run of the game because of an unforced error to take a 1-0 lead in the top of the first.  With two outs and Marquis Riley on first base, Kelvin Freeman ripped a routine fly ball to centerfield that was misplayed by Luis Diaz (Geneva, N.Y.) allowing Riley to score from first base giving NC A&T the early advantage.
 
Due to a tremendous pitching effort by Aggie hurler Brent Moore, it took NCCU until the bottom of the third frame to record its first hit.  Freshman Tyler Murphy (Islip, N.Y.) did so with an infield single.
 
Still trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, the maroon and gray made its first move.  With one out Troy Marrow (Lutherville, Md.) singled to begin the Eagle offensive charge and advanced to second on Carter Williamson’s (Roanoke, Va.) groundout to the Aggie first baseman.  The ensuing batter Ross Plummer (Winston-Salem, N.C.) reached base on an error by Riley and Marrow came around to score tying the game at 1-1.  Freshman Deion Doubledee (Wilson, N.C.) clubbed a double to left centerfield driving in Plummer, giving the maroon and gray the 2-1 advantage after four frames.
 
With two outs in the top of the fifth, Riley reached base after being hit by a pitch, and came around to score on Luke Tendler’s RBI single to tie the game at 2-2/
 
NCCU threw its best haymaker in the bottom of the fifth that was aided by two Aggie errors.  Senior designated hitter Etienne Farquharson (Inagua, Bahamas) reached base on an error by Moore and was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Dylan Drayton (Raleigh, N.C.).  After a Tyson Simpson (Burgaw, N.C.) single that put runners on first and third with one out.   A&T’s catcher Stefan Jordan made a costly mistake when Luis Diaz earned a walk on a full-count pitch by attempting to gun Simpson at second base trying to steal, but no one was covering which allowed Simpson to reach second and brought Farquharson in from third base putting the Eagles up 3-2.
 
After a Marrow squeeze bunt put NCCU up 4-2, Williamson’s RBI single scored the third and final run of the frame and put the maroon and gray in charge at 5-2.
NC A&T tried to mount a rally in the top of the sixth after a Mark Nales bunt single, but Michael Radford hit a hard grounder right to Romano who turned a 1-6-3 double play thwarting any rally for the Aggies in the inning. 
 
Drayton led off the bottom of the seventh with a hard shot to left field that was misplayed by A&T’s Andre McKoy which allowed the sophomore to reach third base, later scoring on Simpson’s second hit of the day, which put NCCU up 6-2.  After a Diaz walk and a Marrow sacrifice bunt, Williamson recorded his 31 RBI of the year on a sacrifice fly, and Plummer helped make it 8-2 on a hard shot back to the pitcher that dropped in for an infield hit.
 
After A&T scored three runs on three hits in the eighth inning to pull within three at 8-5, Drayton crushed his second double of the year that bounced over the right centerfield wall advancing Farquharson, who led off the inning with an infield hit, to third base.  After Diaz was intentionally walked, Marrow’s hard shot off the pitcher’s mound bounced into the outfield bringing in Drayton and Farquharson plating the final runs of the game at 10-5 in favor of NCCU.
 
The Aggies could not muster up any offense in the final inning as the Eagles held on for the 10-5 win, taking the season series four games to two and putting the all-time record since NCCU brought the program back to 5-4 in favor of NC A&T.
 
Romano earned his first win as an Eagle going a season-long seven innings scattering eight hits, three earned runs, with three walks and two strikeouts.  A&T’s Brent Moore took the loss going six-and-two-thirds with eight runs allowed, but none of the runs were earned with two walks and a strikeout.
 
Of the 10 hits the Aggies registered on the afternoon, Freeman finished the day 3-for-5 at the plate, while the top three A&T hitters in the lineup McKoy (1-for-5), Dairio Little (0-for-5),  and Riley (0-for-3) were a combined 1-for-13 at the plate.
 
On the other hand, the Eagles ended up with 11 hits with eight different student-athletes recording at least one, led by Marrow’s 2-for-3 effort with three RBI and a run scored.  Marrow now has 27 RBI on the year.  Drayton ended the day 1-for-4 but reached third base on an error and scored twice along with his stellar play at shortstop.  Simpson ended the afternoon with a 2-for-5 effort at the plate with an RBI and two runs scored. 
 
With the win, NCCU (12-26, 8-7 MEAC) is all alone in second place behind league perennial power Bethune-Cookman who is currently 12-3 in conference action in the Southern Division with a three-game set looming against the Wildcats next weekend. 
 
The Eagles will hit the road for a mid-week showdown with Blue Hose of Presbyterian College on Wednesday night, April 18 at the PC Baseball Complex in Clinton, S.C.  First pitch is slated for 6:00
 
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