Two athletes from Chesterfield County have helped Norfolk State University win its first MEAC baseball title.

Khie Simms, a senior outfielder from Clover Hill High School, and freshman shortstop Raphy Rodriguez from Thomas Dale High School are among the NSU Spartans standouts under MEAC Coach of the Year Keith Shumate.

By virtue of winning the MEAC, the Spartans are headed to the NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament, where they will play East Carolina University at noon Friday, June 4, in the Greenville, N.C., regional. Other schools in the region are the University of Maryland and the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.

Simms and Rodriguez, both outstanding defensively, were factors on offense in NSU’s 7-6, 11-inning win over North Carolina Central University in the MEAC finals at the Spartans’ Marty Miller Field.

Simms contributed a hit, an RBI and a walk in the championship game, while Rodriguez added two walks.

On the season, Simms is hitting .278 and Rodriguez is hitting .222 with eight stolen bases. Rodriguez’s senior season in 2020 at Thomas Dale High School was wiped out by the pandemic.

The Spartans are headed to the NCAAs with plenty of firepower.

Danny Hosley, a senior from Vienna, Va., has hit .375 with nine stolen bases. Hosley is also a front-line starting pitcher with a 7-1 record, 2.95 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 59 innings.

Second baseman Alsander Womack, a senior from the Charlotte, N.C., area, has hit. 358 with three homers, 12 doubles, 36 RBIs and 17 stolen bases.

Womack, who delivered the walk-off, game-winning hit in the 11th inning against North Carolina Central, is the son of former MLB player Tony Womack, a Danville native.

Tony Womack helped the Arizona Diamondbacks win the 2001 World Series, splitting time between second base and shortstop. He was a National League All-Star in 1997 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and a three-time NL stolen base leader from 1997 through 1999.