ORANGEBURG, S.C. — Senior first baseman
Joirea Dumas collected three more hits, including her fourth home run of the three-day event, to finish with a .444 batting average over the weekend to highlight play for the North Carolina Central University softball team in Sunday's action at the MEAC North/South Round-Up at the Orangeburg Recreation Park.
The Eagles left 10 runners on base in a 4-2 loss to Norfolk State University (16-13 Overall, 9-6 MEAC) and then committed four costly errors in a 5-2 loss to Morgan State University (14-12 Overall, 11-4 MEAC).
NC Central (5-28 Overall, 3-6 MEAC) will next host rival North Carolina A&T State University in a four-game MEAC Southern Division series on Saturday-Sunday, April 24-25 at Thomas Brooks Park in Cary, North Carolina.
GAME ONE: Norfolk State. 4, NC Central 2
For a third straight game, NCCU outhit its opponent and left double-digit runners on base. The Eagles finished with a 5-4 hit edge over Norfolk State, but stranded 10 runners on base in the narrow loss to the Spartans.
NSU led from the early stages of the contest after senior Tuli Iosefa drilled a two-run homer to straightaway center field with just one out in the bottom of the first.
The Eagles were held scoreless for the first four innings by winning pitcher sophomore Cam Anderson (6-3), but pulled within one on a bases-loaded walk drawn by freshman
Lexus Brown. However, Anderson got a groundout on the next batter to end the inning with the bases full.
The Spartans tacked on two insurance runs in the fifth before Brown knocked in NCCU's final run with a sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh.
Senior
Joirea Dumas collected two more hits for the Eagles and Brown's two RBI gave her four runs batted in on the weekend. Senior
Tamiera Sanchez had NCCU's lone extra-base hit with a double down the left field line to begin the third.
GAME TWO: Morgan State 5, NC Central 2
Freshman starting pitcher
Jaylah Barr (0-7) left the game with one out in the fifth inning without having let up an earned run to that point, but took the loss as four NCCU errors led to three costly unearned runs for the victorious Bears.
MSU picked up an unearned run in the first, second and fourth innings, despite only having two hits over those first four innings. The Eagles committed all four of their errors over that span to fall behind 3-1.
Sanchez accounted for NCCU's first run in the third. She picked up her second hit of the day with a single up the middle of the infield, stole second and eventually scored on an error.
Dumas launched her home run in the sixth to cap the scoring for the Eagles. All four of her home runs in the event were solo shots. Dumas leads the MEAC with seven home runs.
A two-run single senior Meikel Turner just out of the reach of the diving shortstop supplied enough insurance for classmate Stephanie Rundlett in the pitcher's circle. Rundlett (6-6) limited NCCU to just three hits while fanning seven Eagles on the way to her complete-game victory.
