BALTIMORE, Md. – The Hampton University softball team swept a doubleheader over Coppin State on Sunday at the CSU Softball Field, winning the first game 8-4 before taking the second game 9-1 in five innings.
 
The Lady Pirates (23-18, 11-3 MEAC) have won eight straight games and 10 of their last 12.
 
Hampton scored three runs in the top of the first inning of the first game, jumping out to an immediate 3-0 lead. Freshman Kayla DeSchepper (Lakewood, Colo.), the reigning MEAC Rookie of the Week, drove in two runs with a triple to right field to kick off the scoring.
 
Junior Kerissa Burruel (Phoenix, Ariz.) then doubled home DeSchepper to cap off the opening frame.
 
Coppin State pushed across a run in the bottom of the third to cut Hampton's lead to 3-1, before the Lady Pirates scored three times in the top of the fourth, starting when freshman Heather Baccus (Hertford, N.C.) doubled home Burruel, who reached on an error to lead off the inning.
 
Sophomore Diamond Ponds (Riverside, Calif.) then singled home Baccus, before junior Margaret Wilkins (Tustin, Calif.), the reigning MEAC Player of the Week, was hit by a pitch. Once on base, Wilkins stole second base, then third, before ultimately scoring to put Hampton up 6-1.
 
RBI singles from freshman Taylor Clark (Queen Creek, Ariz.) in the fifth and sophomore Taylor McCoy (Riverview, Fla.) in the sixth gave the Lady Pirates an 8-1 lead.
 
Coppin State (10-23, 5-8 MEAC) scored three times in the bottom of the seventh, cutting Hampton's lead to 8-4, before junior Jailynn Jackson (Virginia Beach, Va.), the reigning MEAC Pitcher of the Week, struck out the last batter of the game with runners on first and second to squelch the comeback.
 
McCoy, DeSchepper, Burruel, and Ponds each had two hits for the Lady Pirates in the first game, and Wilkins and DeSchepper each scored twice. DeSchepper led the team with two RBIs.
 
Jackson went the full seven innings to pick up her 15th win of the season, striking out eight.
 
The second game had a nearly identical beginning, with the Lady Pirates scoring three times in the top of the first inning. DeSchepper got things started with a two-run single up the middle, before McCoy scored on an RBI groundout from Burruel.
 
Coppin State got on the board with a sac fly in the bottom of the first, cutting Hampton's lead to 3-1.
 
Freshman Danielle Budden (Jackson, N.J.) singled to short in the second inning to score Wilkins, who led off the inning with a triple, before scoring herself later in the inning to put Hampton up 5-1.
 
An RBI double from Burruel in the fourth gave the Lady Pirates a 6-1 lead, before Hampton pushed across three more runs in the top of the fifth, starting with a single down the left field line from Wilkins that scored Baccus.
 
Budden followed that with a single, eventually advancing to second base on an error. Ponds and Wilkins scored in the process, giving Hampton a 9-1 lead.
 
Budden went 3-for-4 in the second game, driving in three runs. Wilkins, McCoy, and Ponds each added two hits, while DeSchepper and Burruel each drove in two runs.
 
Sophomore Jecholia Pratt (Orlando, Fla.) picked up her eighth win of the season, scattering four hits over five innings and striking out one.
 
The doubleheader was pushed from Saturday to Sunday due to field conditions. There is no word as of yet regarding the third game of the series.
 
The Lady Pirates will have their 2014 home finale on Tuesday in a doubleheader against George Mason starting at 2 p.m. 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.