Bison Rally to Win 6-5 Over Florida A&M
ORMOND BEACH, FLA. - The Bison opener at the 2008 MEAC Softball Championship proved to be a thriller, as No. 2 seed Howard rallied to defeat No. 3 seed Florida A&M (FAMU) 6-5 at the Ormond Sports Complex in Ormond Beach, Fla.
Senior pitcher Dale McNeal earned the win for the Bison (22-15 overall), while Tiffany Chan suffered the loss for the Rattlers (15-39).
After two scoreless innings the Bison finally struck in the third, scoring three in the bottom of the inning on a sacrifice fly by junior Kristina Cordova and a left-field double by senior Candice Tatum.
Howard added another run in the fifth inning when Cordova's single plated Courtney Young to close the Bison within one run of the lead.
The story of the game was Cordova's performance as she plated the game-winning runs in the sixth inning. Cordova batted fourth in the order behind Young, the reigning MEAC Player of the Year, who was intentionally walked in her four at-bats.
"That's what happens when you have a player the caliber of Courtney," Howard coach Tonja Braxton said. "They chose to walk her intentionally, but it helped create opportunities for Kristina who had a monster game for us."
The Bison will face the winner of No. 1 Bethune-Cookman and No. 4 Morgan State this evening at 7 p.m.