Box Score
Savannah State vs. NCCU Final Box Score (HTML)

NORFOLK, VA. – With its back against the wall facing elimination, the North Carolina Central University baseball team put it all together on Thursday night in a 10-3 win over Savannah State University in the 2012 MEAC Baseball Championship at Marty Miller Field in Norfolk, Va.
 
The complete team effort began from the bottom of the first frame when the Eagles pounced on SSU starter Shawn Gallagher for four runs to chase him from the ballgame.  Dylan Drayton’s leadoff single was the jolt NCCU need to get the engines running as Tyson Simpson (Burgaw, N.C.) followed that up with a single of his own and then junior Luis Diaz (Geneva, N.Y.) was hit-by-a-pitch to load the bases with no outs.  That’s when sophomore Troy Marrow (Lutherville, Md.) crushed his second career triple, driving in three runs to give him 43 RBI on the year, putting the Eagles ahead 3-0.  Marrow later scored on Carter Williamson’s (Roanoke, Va.) RBI single giving him 44 on the season as the maroon and gray led 4-0 after one complete.
 
In the top of the second inning, Savannah State returned the favor by plating three unearned runs highlighted by Darien Campbell’s two RBI double as the Tigers cut the margin to one at 4-3.  The Eagles minimized the damage as Julius Green flew out to center field with the bases loaded and two outs on the board.
 
Marrow’s leadoff double in the bottom of the third followed up by a second RBI single by Williamson gave the Eagles a 5-3 advantage.  Williamson now has 45 RBI on the year.
 
With a two-run lead, the NCCU defense stepped it up as Virginia native Michael Romano (Spotsylvania, Va.) put on his best performance in an Eagle uniform shutting down the Tiger bats the rest of the way.
 
A head’s up play by senior Etienne Farquharson (Inagua, Bahamas) caught SSU’s Joseph McCrary in a base-running blunder in the fourth to keep the Tigers off the board as a Campbell had advanced to third on an Eagle throwing error.
 
NCCU put the pressure on Savannah State in the bottom of the fifth with three runs, which all began on a one out single by Farquharson.  Tyler Murphy (Islip, N.Y.) reached on a fielder’s choice and senior Ross Plummer (Winston-Salem, N.C.) walked to load the bases, when Drayton drilled a two-out single plating the final two runs of the frame after Anthony Wilson (Fort Washington, Md.) drove in the first run on a RBI groundout.  Those three runs put NCCU up 8-3 after five complete innings.
 
Romano’s steady performance held SSU to just eight hits through his eight innings of work as the Eagles plated a run in the sixth on a Farquharson RBI single to make it 9-3.
 
The game’s final run was scored in the seventh inning on a Diaz RBI single to make it 10-3 in favor of the team in maroon and gray.
 
NCCU went on to win the contest 10-3 ending the season series against Savannah State with the Tigers edging the Eagles 4-3. With the loss, SSU is now eliminated from the MEAC Baseball Championship.
 
Romano (3-3) earned the win with his tremendous effort but the Eagle offense certainly deserves praise as the top six hitters in the NCCU lineup recorded multiple hits led by Marrow’s 3-for-5 effort with a triple, double, three RBI and two runs scored.  Drayton finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored, a walk, and two RBI as he has reached base in 19 consecutive ballgames.   Simpson (2-for-5 with a run scored), Diaz (2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored), Williamson (2-for-5 with two RBI), and Farquharson (2-for-4 with an RBI, and a run scored) all had impressive days at the plate for the Eagles.
 
With the win, NCCU (19-31, 14-11 MEAC) moves on to Friday night’s elimination game against the loser of the Delaware State/Md. Eastern Shore matchup at approximately 7:00 p.m. from Marty Miller Field.
 
The NCCU Sports Network will be on the air approximately 15 minutes prior to first pitch as play-by-play voice Chris Hooks will have wall-to-wall coverage of Friday night’s elimination game between the Hornet/Hawks and the Eagles. 
 
Stay up-to-date with North Carolina Central University Athletics by flying over to www.NCCUEaglePride.com, the official website of NCCU Athletics.