Box Score Box Score (2014 MEAC Baseball Tournament-Opening Round)

NORFOLK, Va. – In opening round action of the 2014 MEAC Baseball Tournament, North Carolina Central University dropped a 6-1 ballgame to the second seed from the North Division Norfolk State after the Spartan pitching staff held the Eagles to four hits, while the maroon and gray left eight men stranded on Wednesday morning at Marty Miller Field in Norfolk, Va.
 
The loss sends NCCU (18-32-1, 12-12 MEAC) to the loser's bracket as the Eagles will face the loser of the Maryland Eastern Shore/Bethune-Cookman matchup on Thursday morning, May 15 at 9:00 a.m.
 
Through the first four innings, NCCU managed just one hit, but left a runner stranded in three of the four frames.  The maroon and gray finally cracked the scoreboard in the fifth inning on senior Zack Lee's RBI single that drove in sophomore Kory Wood who recorded a one out walk.
 
Senior Carter Williamson's leadoff double to leftfield in the fifth inning seemed to get the maroon and gray rolling as Williamson advanced to third on redshirt junior Eric Kimber's (Greensboro, N.C.) fly ball to centerfield.  The next two batters could not get the Eagles on the board in the frame as Bryant Battle (Greenville, N.C.) grounded out and sophomore Christian Triplett (Wilkesboro, N.C.) struck out swinging.
 
Senior righty Terry McNabb settled in after the fast NSU start and shut down the Spartans from the third inning all the way till the seventh when an NCCU error allowed Norfolk State to make it 4-1.
 
A two out rally by the Spartans in the bottom of the eighth that began with a Cameron Day bloop single, followed up by Ross Cardwell's RBI double, and Cody Ellis's first RBI triple of the year to make it 6-1 in favor of Norfolk State.
 
In the first two frames, Norfolk State came out swinging with six hits to take a 3-0 advantage on the Eagles.  Andre Moore's leadoff triple along with Zach Markel's RBI double got the Spartans rolling in the first inning, while Moore's RBI single was followed up by Chase Kyriacou's RBI single as well.
 
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