CARY, N.C. – North Carolina A&T clinched a share of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Southern Division softball title after a 4-0 win against North Carolina Central (NCCU) in the first game of the doubleheader, Sunday afternoon at Thomas Brooks Park. The Eagles won the second game 6-5 in 10 innings.
The Aggies improved to 10-26 overall and 10-6 in the conference. In Game 1, junior catcher Jocelyn Bennett recorded the game's first hit in the third inning with a leadoff single to center field. Sophomore Moriah Terry pinch ran for Bennett and stole second with one out.
After a walk to junior Eternal Fuller, Fuller and Terry pulled off a double steal to move two runners into scoring position. Sophomore Jai Deese delivered the first run of the game with a single through the right side to drive home Terry and advance Fuller to third. Deese advanced to second base on the throw home.
Estrada doubled to left-center to drive home Fuller and Deese after a pitching change for a 3-0 before the inning ended with two consecutive strikeouts. The Aggies scored another run in the fifth inning after freshman Kendall Macauley singled up the middle to drive home Fuller, who led off the inning with a bunt single.
Freshman S'Niyah Stinson and sophomore Kayla Douglas combined for the shutout in the circle. Stinson (5-10) did not give up a hit until the fifth inning. It would be the only hit she gave up over five innings pitched as she recorded three strikeouts. Douglas pitched the final two innings of the ballgame, giving up one hit and striking out one.
The hit Douglas gave up came in the seventh inning by K'Lea Parks. But Douglas got Diamond Porter to pop out to third to give the Aggies the divisional title.
Estrada went 1-for-4 with two RBI. Macauley extended her hitting to eight games after her RBI single in the fifth. Freshman Kayla Taylor went 0-for-2 to snap her six-game hitting streak but drew a walk to reach base safely for the ninth consecutive game.
In the second game, Macauley extended her hitting streak to nine games by going 2-for-5 with a run scored. Taylor reached to extend her reach-base safely streak to 10 games as she finished the second game 2-for-4 with a run scored.
Senior Stephanie Williams, freshman Kiara Richards and Fuller had multiple-hit games with two hits apiece. Richards also posted two RBI.
For the second straight day, NCCU earned a walk-off win. The walk-off win came after Bennett drove home Terry with an RBI groundout to short in the visitor's 10th to give the Aggies a 5-4 lead. Terry pinch ran for Williams after, by rule, Williams was placed on second in the extra innings contest.
In the NCCU (7-29, 5-7 MEAC) 10th, Tamiera Sanchez went to second to open the inning. Nadia Blevins then singled to put runners at first and third. Blevins stole second, and Hailey Batista walked to load the bases. Joirea Dumas then hit a two-run RBI single up the middle to deliver the Eagles the one-run win, 6-5.
Richards pitched 3.2 innings giving up three earned runs on seven hits with three strikeouts. Senior Bayleigh Kirby (0-6) took the loss, pitching the final 5.1 innings.
The Aggies took a 3-0 lead highlighted by a two-run RBI single from Richards. The Aggies added another run in the second inning after Fuller scored on a failed pickoff attempt to first base trying to get Estrada.
NCCU fought back to tie the game at 4 with a run in the third and three runs in the fourth. With the game still tied at 4 in the seventh, the Aggies loaded the bases thanks to three consecutive one-out singles from Taylor, Williams and Richards.
But Taylor was thrown out at home on a groundball back to the pitcher. The inning ended with a strikeout. Blevins led the Eagles seventh off by reaching on an error, but she was thrown out trying to steal second, and the next two Eagles went down in order.
The Aggies travel to Cullowhee, N.C., to face Western Carolina in a doubleheader Thursday starting at 2 p.m.
