Softball

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Recruitment of McNeal Pays Dividends

The Howard University women's softball team is having the best season in school history. After going, 12-15 four years ago, the team has shown dramatic improvement, winning 22 games in 2005, 26 in 2006 and at press time, it has already won 25 games with eight games remaining in the regular season and the MEAC Tournament.

Much of the credit has to go head Coach Tonja Braxton, who used an aggressive recruiting approach to bring in student athletes who can play at a competitive level. To that end, Braxton went out in search of pitching, an important element in the success of any softball program.

"I knew that in order for us to compete at a high level, we had to have quality pitching," explains Braxton, in her fifth season. "I went after three pitchers at that time, but it was one that I really wanted all along."

That "one" that Braxton is referring to is Dale McNeal, the junior ace from Los Angeles, CA. After an outstanding prep career, McNeal came in and gave the Bison instant credibility, appearing in 36 games as a freshman and posting a 15-14 record. Last season, she appeared in 38 games and duplicated the school-record 15 wins.

"I knew Tracy Javier (Howard University's senior outfielder) and she told me that Howard had a new program and they were trying to recruit good players," recalled McNeal. "Then I met Coach Braxton and she was very impressive in her presentation. I did some research on Howard and to be honest I was not that interested at first because I had not been exposed to HBCUs. But when I learned more about its prestige and more importantly, its physical therapy program, I decided that Howard was the place for me. It has turned out to be a great decision."

Howard is currently 25-14 and 10-2 in the MEAC, having recently gone 4-1 in the MEAC Roundup. McNeal, who has a 15-8 record and leads the MEAC in strikeouts, went 3-0 in the Roundup and was credited with a save. She was named MEAC Pitcher of the Week earlier in the season

"We depend on her a lot for her leadership," said Braxton. "She has come through for us many times this season. She has shown improvement in all areas. She has developed an arsenal of pitches and is able to get us out of tough situations."

In a recent game, freshman Christina McCoy, still another one of Braxton's recruiting gems, was struggling in the late innings of a game that Howard led, 5-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning. With the bases loaded and no outs, McNeal entered the game, struck out the first batter and then got the second and third outs on infield popouts to preserve the win.

"Coach Braxton has done a really good job of putting the pieces together," noted McNeal, who will hold several school records before her career is over. "With Christina coming on like she has, it has given us another quality pitcher. We are playing good defense and we are getting hitting from different places each game. I am happy to be a part of this and I like our future."

McNeal, one of eight players on the team who was named to the 2007 MEAC All Academic team, has a 3.2 GPA and says she plans to go to graduate school and eventually become an EMT specialist.

"I am really grateful to Coach Braxton for bringing me to Howard University to be a part of this," said McNeal. "I am getting a chance to be a part of something successful and at the same time getting a great education."

NOTES: In the recent NCAA statistics, Howard has four players who rank nationally...Courtney Young, a strong candidate for MEAC Rookie of the Year, ranks 17^th in batting at .459, 11^th in RBIs and tied for 19^th in doubles...she is the only freshman to rank in batting in the Top 20...Kristina Cordova ranks 32^nd in batting at .434, Candice Tatum is 16^th in Hit by Pitch category and Brianne Gutirrez is 10^th in Toughest To Strike Out (only 4 strikeouts in 106 at bats)...the Bison have an important showdown with Hampton University, which is undefeated in conference play...the two North Divison rivals meet in a doubleheader on Thursday at Hampton and then they meet again on April 28 at Banneker Stadium for a twinbill that gets underway at 1 pm...Howard's next home game is Saturday against Morgan State in a doubleheader at 1 pm.

There are no contests upcoming.

Home teams listed on the bottom.

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Meet the Coach

Asst. AD for Academic Advising/Head Softball Coach
Tonja M. Braxton