DOVER, Del. – The Hampton University softball team will face its first road competition in conference play this Sunday and Monday, thanks to a three-game set against Delaware State at The Hornets Nest.
 
Game times are TBA; the weekend schedule has already been altered due to expected weather conditions, and further modifications are possible.
 
The Lady Pirates (12-12, 3-0 MEAC) kicked off conference play this past weekend with a three-game home sweep of Morgan State – including a pair of five-inning wins (10-1 in Saturday's second game and 9-1 on Sunday).
 
Junior Jailynn Jackson (Virginia Beach, Va.) picked up a pair of wins in the three-game set, giving up just seven hits and one earned run in a combined 12.0 innings pitched. She was named MEAC Pitcher of the Week this past Monday.
 
Freshman Danielle Budden (Jackson, N.J.) drove in six runs over the weekend – including four in Saturday's first game, which included a three-run home run – and went a combined 4-for-9 at the plate for the series.
 
Budden leads Hampton with four home runs so far this season.
 
Junior Kerrisa Burruel (Phoenix, Ariz.) added a grand slam in Saturday's second game, her first homer of the season.
 
Delaware State (15-7) will be making its conference debut this weekend, and the Lady Hornets have not played since March 23, when they swept a doubleheader over Cornell. Overall, Delaware State has won three straight games and five of its last six.
 
The Lady Pirates are in their first season under interim head coach Michael Pelegrino, who was an assistant coach last season as Hampton won 34 games, taking the MEAC Northern Division regular-season title and winning its first MEAC Tournament crown since 1996.
 
Jackson was a large part of last season's success, earning MEAC Pitcher of the Year honors after winning 26 games for the Lady Pirates and striking out a MEAC-best (and school-record) 255 batters in 252.0 innings pitched.
 
She was also an NFCA Second Team All-Region selection and a Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) Second Team All-State honoree. Jackson led the MEAC in wins, ERA (2.64), and strikeouts last season, while setting school records in innings pitched, appearances, and starts.
 
Jackson also threw 25 complete games last season.
 
The Lady Pirates return seven letterwinners and five starters (as well as two pitchers) from last season's squad, including junior Margaret Wilkins (Tustin, Calif.), who was named First Team All-MEAC last season after hitting .343 with six home runs and 32 RBIs.
 
She tied for second in the MEAC with 49 runs scored last season, and Wilkins was also third in the conference in hits, fifth in total bases, seventh in doubles, and tied for eighth in the home runs.
 
Sophomore Taylor McCoy (Riverview, Fla.) was the Most Outstanding Player of last season's MEAC Tournament, and she earned VaSID Second Team All-State honors after hitting a team-best .398. She also led the Lady Pirates in hits, doubles, TBIs, total bases, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, and fielding percentage.
 
McCoy was second in the MEAC in hits, doubles, and total bases last season, while ranking third in the conference in batting average and tying for fourth in RBIs. She was also fifth in the MEAC in on-base percentage.
 
Burruel was a Second Team All-MEAC selection last season, after hitting .285 for the season, recording a .350 on-base percentage, and going 3-for-4 in stolen bases. She also had a .925 fielding percentage, committing just 11 errors on the season.
 
Sophomore Diamond Ponds (Riverside, Calif.) was tied for fifth in the MEAC last season with 22 stolen bases.
 
The Lady Pirates are 44-30 all-time against Delaware State, and Hampton took two out of three from the Lady Hornets in the Lady Pirates Softball Stadium last season. Prior to last season, the Lady Hornets had won five straight over the Lady Pirates.
 
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.