SB: Hofstra Drops Two At Pirate Classic

2/19/2011 10:38:00 PM

Greenville, N.C. – The Hofstra Softball team dropped a pair of games as it fell 2-0 to Virginia and 5-0 to host East Carolina on Saturday afternoon at the Pirate Classic.

Hofstra falls to 4-3 on the season with the two losses. Virginia improves to 5-2 with the win, while East Carolina moves to 5-4 in 2011.

In the opener against Virginia, the Pride had its first error of the season in the second inning after playing flawless defense in winning its opening tournament at the Seminole Kickoff Classic last weekend (five games). The error led to an unearned run on a sacrifice fly from Ali Pittman as Virginia took a quick 1-0 lead. The Cavaliers then added an insurance run in the fifth inning on a two-out RBI single from Marcy Bowdren.

Senior third baseman Krista Thorn (Smithtown, N.Y.) had two hits for the Pride, including one in the bottom of the seventh to put two runners on and two out. However, Virginia pitcher Melanie Mitchell was able to get out of the final jam when she got pinch-hitter D.J. Slugh (Marlboro, N.J.) to pop up to shortstop to end the game.

Mitchell allowed five hits and struck out seven to get the shut out. Hofstra sophomore pitcher Olivia Galati (West Babylon, N.Y.) struck out 10, walked three, and allowed five hits and one earned run to take the loss and slip to 2-2 on the year.

In the Pride's second game of the day, East Carolina's Toni Paisley would keep Hofstra off-balance all day as she held the Pride to just one hit through the first four innings. Paisley struck out the side in the first inning, en route to eight strikeouts in the contest.

The Pirates would get two runs in the first inning as Kristi Oshiro led off with a walk and would come around to score the game's first run on a single from Priscilla Velasquez. Alex Fieldhouse followed with a single, allowing Suzanne Riggs to score East Carolina's second run of the game.

The Pirates extended their advantage to 5-0 with a three-run fourth as Riggs had a two-run double to center for the big damage in the inning.

Hofstra would mount its first threat of the game in the sixth as senior shortstop Trisha Dreslinski (Kingsville, OH) walked and junior second baseman Jess Hirschbuhl (Jamison, PA) singled to give the Pride two runners on base with only one out. Hofstra would be unable to tally any runs, though, as Paisley got the next two batters out to end any thoughts of a Pride rally in that inning.

That would be as close as the Pride would come to scoring a run as Paisley set Hofstra down in order in the final inning.

Wade took the loss for Hofstra, allowing eight hits and five runs (one earned) in six innings. She struck out six and walked just one.

Sophomore right fielder Tessa Ziemba (Wilmington, DE) and sophomore center fielder Rachael Senatore (Sparta, NJ) added the other hits for the Pride in the contest.

Riggs finished 2-4 with two RBIs and one run scored for the Pirates, while Fieldhouse was 2-3 with an RBI.

Hofstra will return to action at the Pirate Classic tomorrow with games against Kent State and a rematch with Virginia, before concluding its trip on Monday with a single game against East Carolina.

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