VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The Hampton University softball team will compete in the 2009 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Softball Championship this Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Ormond Beach Sports Complex in Ormond Beach, Fla.
The Lady Pirates (23-21, 8-6 MEAC) earned the No. 3 seed in the MEAC north division, and will open the tournament against Bethune-Cookman on Thursday at 1:30 p.m. The Lady Wildcats earned the No. 2 seed out of the MEAC south division after going 17-32 with a 7-5 conference mark in the regular season.
Hampton is coming off four straight wins to close out the regular season. The Lady Pirates swept a doubleheader at Coppin State on Saturday, 10-0 and 7-3, before Sunday’s game was cancelled due to weather. Senior
Evelyn Garcia (Poquoson, Va.) went 7-for-9 at the plate with three home runs in the doubleheader.
Howard earned the top seed in the north division by going 9-4 in conference play, despite missing a pair of games due to inclement weather. Delaware State also went 8-6 in conference play, earning a tiebreaker over Hampton after taking two out of three games on April 25 and 26.
Florida A&M went 12-0 in conference play to take the top seed in the south division.
The top four teams in each division qualify for the two-game elimination tournament. Morgan State, Coppin State and South Carolina State did not qualify to compete in the MEAC Championship.
Admission for the 2009 MEAC Softball Championship will be $5 for children, students and seniors. Entire tournament packages can be purchased for $12. Tickets will be available at the Ormond Beach Sports Complex beginning on Thursday.
For more information on the 2009 MEAC Softball Championship, please visit
www.MEACsports.com. For more information on Hampton University softball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at
www.hamptonpirates.com.