When homecoming arrives most students tend to focus on the activities during the week and then the big football game to finish the week. During this time Morgan State University’s other athletic teams tend to be overlooked.
Morgan has three other teams in competition this fall, attempting to win the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship. They are the volleyball team and the men’s and women’s cross country teams. Some spring sports have also played in a shorter fall schedule, such as softball and tennis. Here is a mid-season update on Morgan’s other fall sports.
Women’s Cross-Country. With the MEAC championship beginning in a couple of weeks, there is a lot of well-earned excitement surrounding the Morgan women’s cross-country team.
The Lady Bears have been running through the competition so far this year. Led by senior Karen Escobedo, the lady-bears have won four times, out of six competitions so far this year. They respectively finished second and third in their other two meets.
Escobedo was named the MEAC Women Runner of the week on Sept 13. Escobedo also has the MEAC’s best 5K time so far this season. While Escobedo is doing what she has been accustom to since her freshman year, sophomore Infinnatie Rowe has also hit the track running. She has been the Lady Bear’s top runner in the last three competitions leading them to a victory in their last meet on Oct 8.
The championship meet is on Oct 28 and will be hosted by Delaware State University, where the Lady Bears have not lost this season. They hope to knock off four time defending champion Florida A&M University, and bring a championship back to Baltimore.
Men’s Cross-Country. The Men’s team has not seen the same success as the women, but they continue to run hard this season. Their season started with a second place finish at the Towson University Invitational. Sophomore Halim Joseph established his pace early and finished second overall. His performance set the tone for the season, whom has lead the Bears at every meet this year.
They have not finished higher than second in any meet this season, but Joseph continues to finish in the top ten of the 5k run. He has been helped by other teammates this season such as senior Lenier Tucker, who usually finishes right behind Joseph.
They will have to score better as a group if they hope to have a chance to knock of University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) who has won almost every meet this season. Their championship is the same weekend as the Lady Bears, and they also have the NCAA regional meet in November.
Volleyball. The volleyball team has had a rough start to the season. They started (1-12) before their first conference win versus Norfolk State on Oct 1. They played a very difficult non-conference schedule, visiting teams such as Wake Forest. They also played in a tournament in North Carolina, where junior Cristen Coryatt was named to the all tournament team.
The season is not over for the Lady Bears. Despite their current record they are only (1-2) in the MEAC conference. They have only played two games at home, so they have a few more chances to be competitive in their conference.
They have two games this weekend for homecoming. The Friday night game is against UMES, and will honor the 1992 MEAC championship team. Then on Sunday, they will finish off the festivities with an alumni game in the morning, followed by a match versus Delaware State all at Hill Field House.
The MEAC championships are not until the end of November so the Lady Bears still have a long season ahead of them. With the five of their final eight games at home they have a good chance to turn this season around.
Spring Sports. The Softball team is in the middle of a short eight game fall schedule. These games serve as a preseason, which allows coaches to evaluate new and returning players. They will play half of these games at Lois T. Murphy Field here on campus, with a double-header versus George Mason and MEAC rival Howard University on Oct 21. They finished third in the MEAC last season and return many contributors, including defending MEAC pitcher of the year Amy Begg.
The tennis teams have also played a short, fall schedule with three tournaments. The men’s team opened their season with a tournament win at the Loyola Invitational. They have a tournament this weekend at the Navy Invitational, and hope to continue their winning ways. The women’s team has also played this fall starting with the Fall Tiger Classic at Towson University. They have one other tournament this season, the ITA (Intercollegiate Tennis Association) Regional Tournament in November.
There are only a few games left for all of these teams, and they need the support from Morgan fans to finish the season strong. Come out and route for these teams as they compete for their respective MEAC championships.
