The U.S. East scored a run in the top of the ninth inning to edge Sussex County’s District III, 4-3, as the Senior League softball World Series got underway on Sunday afternoon.

Both the Senior League and Big League World Series are being played at Lower Sussex Little League in Roxana this week.

District III sent the game into extra innings with a run in the bottom of the seventh. Logan Walls doubled home Jenna Calloway to knot the score at 3-3.

District III put a runner on base in the bottom of the ninth. But U.S. East, from Pennsylvania, turned a game-ending double play.

Walls had three of District III’s eight hits, including a pair of doubles, and scored a run. Jordyn Virden and Hannah Jones also had RBI while Shannon Lord scored a run.

Rachel Calloway pitched a complete game for District III.

Big League

U.S. East 4, District-III 2: District III rallied for a run in the bottom of the sixth before falling short in its World Series opener on Sunday at Lower Sussex.

Taylor Collins singled home Avery Wheatley to pull District III within 4-2. But with one out and runners on second and third, U.S. East pitcher Ally Marcano got back-to-back strikeouts to get out of the jam.

Trailing 2-0, District III got its first run in the third when Mya Maddox singled home Autumn Carroll. Maddox had two of District III’s five hits with pitcher Mika Walker going the distance.

Marcano struck out 15 batters in the contest.

College football

Hornets picked ninth in MEAC: Delaware State has been picked to finish ninth in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football race, according to a poll of league head coaches and sports information directors released during the annual conference preseason kickoff on Sunday.

The Hornets received one first-place vote and 121 total points in the 11-team poll that’s headed by North Carolina A&T. The Aggies shared the 2015 MEAC title with Bethune-Cookman and North Carolina Central.

NCA&T, which received 13 of 22 first-place votes and 498 total points, was declared Black College National Champs after defeating Southwestern Athletic Conference champion Alcorn State in the inaugural Celebration Bowl last season.

The MEAC champion will face the winner of the Southwestern Athletic Conference in the second Annual Celebration Bowl on Dec. 19 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. Delaware State was 1-7 in the MEAC (1-10) overall in Kenny Carter’s first season as head coach in 2015. The Hornets were tied with Howard, Florida A&M and Savannah State in last year’s MEAC race.

Also, five Delaware State players were named to the all-MEAC  preseason team,

Linebacker Malik Harris and cornerback William Burton earned All-MEAC preseason second-team recognition. Harris, a 2015 third-team pick, was tops on the Hornets and second among all MEAC players in tackles-per-game (9.5) and total tackles (104) last season. He was also second on the team and sixth in the league with 14.5 tackles-for-loss (-50 yards) in 2015.

Burton started all 11 games for the Hornets in 2015. He was sixth on the team with 51 total tackles and 30 solo stops, and also returned a fumble recovery 35 yards for a touchdown against Kent State last season.

Wide receiver Aris Scott, linebacker Rashawn Barrett and offensive lineman Chuka Ezeuzoh were named to the 2016 All-MEAC preseason third team.

Scott was  tops on the Hornets with 46 receptions for 683 yards in 2015. He ranked fourth in the MEAC in receiving yards per game (62.1) and fifth in the league in receptions (4.2 pg) last season.

Barrett was second on the Hornets and sixth among all MEAC players in tackles at 7.6 per game (84 total tackles) during the 2015 campaign. He ranked third on the team and 14th in the league with four sacks, and was tied for second on the Hornets with 8.5 tackles-for-loss a year ago.

Ezeuzoh emerged as a starter and key contributor on the DSU offensive line as a true freshman in 2015.

North Carolina A&T running back Tarik Cohen was selected as the MEAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. South Carolina State linebacker Darius Leonard earned MEAC preseason Defensive Player of the Year honors.

DSU opens the season at the University of Delaware in the renewal of the Route 1 Rivalry on Sept. 1. Kick-off is set for 7 p.m.