DURHAM, N.C. - North Carolina Central will host Howard, the defending MEAC champion, in a three-game softball series at Thomas Brooks Park in Cary, N.C., on Friday and Saturday (April 3-4).

A doubleheader is set for Friday at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Both teams meet again Saturday at 12 p.m.

The Eagles are seeking to bounce back after dropping two of three games at Norfolk State last weekend. Tied for fourth in the league standings, NCCU is 5-4 in the MEAC and 7-26 overall. Howard, 15-13 overall, is the league leader at 8-1 in the MEAC.

NCCU is aiming to snap a five-game losing streak against the Bison. The Eagles are led offensively by Tyler Suttles, who ranks eighth in batting average (.365), ninth in slugging percentage (.587), fifth in RBIs (18) and tied for fourth in stolen bases (10) in the MEAC.

Daiyah Bailey is tied for first in stolen bases (13), tied for sixth in runs scored (18) and ranks second in hits (31) in the conference. Mia De La Fuente is tied for ninth in RBIs (14), Kendal Daniels is tied for eighth in runs scored (16) and Izabella Chavez is tied for second in on-base percentage (.500).

Madeline Janssen has pitched her best in conference games, posting a 4-2 mark. She has the league's fourth-lowest ERA (1.68) and ranks third in strikeouts (17) in MEAC play. Her four conference wins are tied for the most among pitchers.

The Eagles have played solid baseball in nine conference games. They rank third in batting average (.321) and earned run average (3.00) and first in fielding percentage (.964).

Howard enters the series on a six-game win streak, including a three-game sweep of South Carolina State at home last weekend. Offensively, the Bison is led by Maryn Jones, who is second in batting average (.435), first in runs scored (23) and on-base percentage (.557), fourth in RBIs (19), tied for third in hits (30) and third in stolen bases (11) in the conference.

Taylor Ames-Alexander, last year's MEAC player of the year at South Carolina State, is now at Howard where she ranks second in RBIs (22), ninth in hits (28) and 10^th in runs scored (14).

Howard's ace pitcher is Aiko Conaway, who is 3-0 in MEAC games. Conaway ranks second in ERA (1.59) and leads in strikeouts (29) in league play.

The Bison is third in batting average (.319), second in ERA (2.02) and third in fielding percentage (.962) in nine MEAC games. 

The last time NCCU hosted Howard was in 2024. The Eagles took the first game 3-1 before falling 8-3 and 12-3. Last season, the Bison swept the series at home but two wins were by two runs or less.

For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com.