The Lady Bears softball team saw their 11-game win streak snapped Wednesday after splitting a home double-header against the Villanova Wildcats at Lois T. Murray Field.
Morgan State University Lady Bears won game one 1-0 but game two was all Villanova, defeating the Lady Bears 5-2 in eight innings.
Despite their winning streak coming to an end, the Lady Bears (22-14) remain the hottest team in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. After their series against Delaware State last weekend, Morgan move to 10-2 in the conference and sit atop of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference northern division standings.
“We’re all taking it one game at a time. We want to stay in first place going down to the tournament. We’re playing the game how we know and not letting up,” said pitcher Stephanie Rundlett.
Before the Lady Bears loss to Nova, they haven’t been in the loss column since March 27, when they lost to the University of Missouri, Kansas City.
Since then they have racked up wins against MEAC opponents Howard and Norfolk State, as well as sweeping a, then, 29-win Towson Tigers team.
The key to the Lady Bears’ success has been the balance of elite offense and\ defense. Outfielder Damali Young leads the team in six statistical categories on the offensive side, including 125 at bats.
Defensively, the Lady Bears pitching has been its backbone, along with a solid infield and outfield to back it up. Standout pitcher Amy Begg has a 11-6 record, 86 strikeouts and a 2.44 ERA.
Sophomore pitcher Rundlett is neck and neck with Begg with a 11-7 record, 2.80 ERA and 87 strikeouts.
On April 16, Rundlett snagged her second straight MEAC Pitcher of the Week honor after a going 3-0, striking out 14 batters and holding a 0.48 ERA. Rundlett received her first Pitcher of the Week honor April 9 in a relief performance against Norfolk State. In game two she allowed two runs on six hits and struck out 10 batters. Rundlett and Begg combined for 17 strikeouts in game two against Norfolk State
The Lady Bears return to action this weekend and hope to create more separation in the MEAC northern division standings when they take on the University of Maryland Eastern Shore in a three-game home series.
