Baton Rouge, La. - Sophomore pitcher Olivia Galati (West Babylon, N.Y.) shut out No. 21 LSU for eight innings, but was outdueled by Brittany Mack as the Tigers captured a 1-0 nine-inning win over Hofstra on Friday at the Purple & Gold Challenge at LSU's Tiger Park.
The loss drops Hofstra's record to 6-6 on the season, while LSU improves to 14-5. Mack had a perfect game broken up with two outs in the seventh before finishing with a two-hit, nine-inning shutout, striking out 11 and walking none.
The game was scoreless through seven and Galati led off the top of the eighth inning with an infield single. Back-to-back groundouts moved her to third base with two outs, but junior second baseman Jess Hirschbuhl's grounder up the middle was pulled in by a diving stop from LSU second baseman Jacee Blades, who threw Hirschbuhl out from her knees to end the inning.
In the ninth, Tammy Wray led off with a double to center field, but was quickly wiped out by a line-drive double play on a leaping catch from senior Trisha Dreslinski (Kingsville, Ohio) at shortstop to give Galati a temporary reprieve. The Tigers, though, strung together three straight two-out singles to load the bases. Freshman right fielder Alex Boulet then slapped a single through the right side to plate the game's only run.
Neither team threatened until the third inning, when LSU had back-to-back two out singles to put runners on first and third. Galati, though, responded by retiring Anissa Young on a comebacker to keep the game scoreless.
With the score still deadlocked at 0-0, LSU designated player Tiffany Shaw led off the bottom of the sixth inning with her third hit of the day, but senior catcher Laura Valentino (Smithtown, N.Y.) threw her out trying to steal.
Hofstra finally broke up the perfect game from Mack with two outs in the seventh inning, as sophomore right fielder Tessa Ziemba (Wilmington, Del.) singled up the middle to give the Pride its first baserunner. Valentino, though, grounded out the end the inning. Galati then retired the side in order in the bottom of the seventh to send the game to extra innings and picked up the Pride's second hit to lead off the eighth.
Galati allowed 13 hits on the day (five in the decisive ninth inning), struck out two and walked one, as she took the loss. It was the second time she shut out a nationally ranked team through the regulation seven innings, as she also earned a 2-0 win over No. 23 Florida State on Feb. 13, but this time she came up short in extra innings.
Hofstra will face Pittsburgh on the second day of the Purple & Gold Challenge tomorrow at 10 a.m. (weather permitting) before the tournament goes to bracket play on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning.
