TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The bad news is the North Carolina
A&T softball team lost 13-0 on Saturday.
The good news is the Aggies are still near the top of the MEAC
Southern Division standings after splitting Saturday's doubleheader at Lady
Rattler Complex. Sabrina Edmonds hit her fourth home run of the season, and
Juanita Jernigan went 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI to lead A&T to a
9-5 win in the first game.
Edmonds and Jernigan lead the team in home runs. The Aggies
improved to 12-19 overall and 5-1 in the MEAC. They have won five out of their
last six games. A two-out rally in the sixth inning helped the Aggies pull away
in the first game.
Trailing 4-3, Zabresha Blakeney led off the inning with a
single. Tiffany Macklin and Erica Turner popped out to bring Florida A&M reliever
Taylor Thomas closer to getting out of the inning. Dominique Smith ended those
plans with a single. Detavia Kenan followed with an RBI double to tie game.
Addie Dozier replaced Thomas, but didn't get help from her defense
as Tranea Jones reached on a fielding error by shortstop Alyssa Weaver. The
miscue allowed Smith and Kenan to score for a 6-4 A&T lead.
A&T padded its lead in the seventh with three more runs.
Blakeney and Tiffany Macklin both drove in runs in the inning. The Aggies
scored their third run on another Rattlers error. With two outs, Florida
A&M first baseman Genesis Lopez bobbled a groundball hit by Smith. The
error allowed Macklin, who reached on a triple, to score for a 9-4 A&T
lead.
The Rattlers (16-24, 2-4) were able to score a run off of
A&T starter Ashira Dobison in the seventh. Tera Gainer singled through the
left side to score Jasmin Donaldson, who reached on a leadoff double. The
Rattlers kept the threat going with a double to right center by Dozier. With
two runners in scoring position, Dobison (11-11) picked up her fourth straight
win by striking out Venica Brown and Kieifi Myrick to end the game.
The Aggies will step outside of the conference on Tuesday
when they travel to Lynchburg, Va., to face Liberty in a 2 p.m., doubleheader.
They return to conference action on Saturday at Savannah State.
