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GREENSBORO, April 27, 2007 – Before a tearful postgame dinner, North Carolina A&T softball seniors Tabitha Veney, Adia Dial and Jessica Cooper closed their careers at the Lady Aggies Softball Complex with style as they swept Bethune-Cookman 8-0 and 11-5 on Friday afternoon.

It was the Aggies fourth straight win over the Wildcats, which was something that didn’t seem possible when the trio first arrived because Bethune-Cookman was the class of the league. It is an illustration of how far Veney, Dial and Cooper have helped to progress the program.

On Friday following the game at a dinner in honor of the seniors, the trio’s teammates discussed Veney’s ability to brighten up a rainy day, Cooper’s tendency to be the motherly figure on the team and Dial discussed the team’s ability to make her feel at home and loved after she traveled to North Carolina from her hometown of Riverside, Calif.

 "Softball is the one thing I’ve never quit,’’ said Dial. “For 15 years it has nurtured me and helped me grow, so I can’t believe it’s coming to an end. My teammates have been like sisters to me and have treated me like family, which has meant so much to me because my family was so far away.”

Dial had a nice final game at the LASC. She had two RBI in the first game. In the second game, she recorded her 10^th win of the season on the mound, which was significant because she came into this season with 10 career wins. Meanwhile, Veney was a combined 2-for-6 with three RBI and one run scored. Cooper capped off the outstanding day for the trio with a combined 2-for-2 with two runs scored.

Lost in the shuffle of the Senior Day festivities was freshman Sasha Philpot’s one-hitter against the Wildcats in the first game. Only a Christina Trimble single that squeezed through third baseman Tangala Conover and shortstop Yahamma White in the second inning separated her from a no-hitter.

The Aggies gave Philpot all the offense she needed early. White started the offensive push with her fourth inside-the-park home run of the season and her seventh overall with one out in the first inning. Jessie Larson followed with a single, but was forced out at second thanks to a Conover fielder’s choice.

A Wildcats error on a Lillian Bullock groundball put runners on first and second. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch, which set up Dial’s two-out, two-run RBI triple to right field that scored Conover and Bullock. A throwing error on the play also allowed Dial to score for a 4-0 Aggies lead.

The Aggies would score two runs apiece over the next two innings to assure the game would end in five innings because of the 8-run rule. Philpot improved to 14-9 as she went five innings, walked two and struck out two.

The Aggies offense got going early again in the second game. Chaola Simmons led off the game with a double to left field, followed by White reaching on an error. It set up a two-run RBI triple from Larson that gave the Aggies a 2-0 lead. Conover came to the plate and continued her excellent play at the plate as of late with a two-run homer that put the Aggies up 4-0.

Conover was 3-for-3 in the game with three RBI and two runs scored in Game 2. She is hitting .435 (10-for-23) in her last seven games with two home runs and 10 RBI with eight runs scored. Conover received another RBI opportunity in the second inning. With Simmons on second and Larson on first, Conover singled to center field, scoring Simmons and giving the Aggies a 5-0 advantage.

Bullock followed with a two-run RBI triple to center and Veney’s RBI single gave the Aggies an 8-1 lead. Veney closed out her home career with a two-run RBI single in the fourth to give the Aggies a commanding 10-1 lead.

Even with all the farewell speeches on Friday, the Aggies season is not over. The Aggies improved to 25-28 overall and 9-5 in the MEAC. They have won 8 out of their last 11 games and will likely enter the MEAC Softball Tournament (May 11-13) as the No. 4 or 5 seed.