BB: Hofstra Hosts Manhattan Tuesday

Hempstead, NY - The Hofstra Baseball team will play its true home opener Tuesday afternoon when the Jaspers of Manhattan College visit University Field for a 3:30 p.m. contest. Hofstra has played four "home" games at Mitchel Athletic Field due to field conditions on campus due to heavy snow.

The Pride (5-13) is back at home after a weekend trip to Delaware that saw Hofstra drop two of three games to its Colonial Athletic Association rival. The teams split a doubleheader Saturday with the Pride taking game two, 12-7, behind the strong offensive showings of Eric Ferguson and Steven Foster. Ferguson hit for the cycle, the first for a Pride player since Ricky Caputo did it in 2005, and Foster ripped three hits including a grand slam home run in an 8-run sixth inning that put Hofstra ahead. Chris Bonk evened his record at 2-2 on the year while Bowie Matteson picked up his second save with four innings of relief.

Foster leads the pride with a .407 average and has added 10 RBIs and six stolen bases. David Leiderman is batting .349 and is tied with Foster for the team lead in hits with 22. Dalton Rouleau, who picked up career hit 100 in Sunday's loss at Delaware, is third on the team in bating with a .333 mark. Ferguson, who batted .412 for the week, is now hitting .320 with nine RBIs.

Manhattan enters the game with a 5-13 record and has won three of its last four games after taking two of three from conference rival Fairfield this past weekend. Vin Teixeira leads the Jaspers with a .281 average. Christian Santisteban is batting .241 with a team-leading 10 RBIs. Scott McLennan and Michael Scarinci lead the pitching staff with two wins apiece.

Brian MacDonald (1-0, 10.80 ERA) will get the start for the Pride. Manhattan has not announced its starting pitcher. MacDonald earned the win in relief in a 6-5 win over UMass Lowell on March 16. He will be making his second start of the season. Hofstra is 22-11 all-time versus the Jaspers and have won three of the last four meetings.

Following the Manhattan game, Hofstra will be in action Wednesday at St. John's with a first pitch at 3 p.m. Hofstra will then travel to Villanova for a three-game weekend series beginning Friday.

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Players Mentioned

#10 Steven Foster: OF; 5' 11"; Freshman; L/R

#15 Eric Ferguson: OF; 5' 11"; Senior; R/R

#23 Brian MacDonald: P/DH; 6' 0"; Senior; R/R

#24 David Leiderman: IF; 6' 3"; Redshirt Sophomore; R/R

#27 Dalton Rouleau: SS; 5' 10"; Graduate Student; R/R

#28 Chris Bonk: P; 6' 5"; Junior; R/R

#29 Bowie Matteson: P; 6' 3"; Junior; R/R

Players Mentioned

#10 Steven Foster
: 5' 11"; Freshman; L/R
: OF

#15 Eric Ferguson
: 5' 11"; Senior; R/R
: OF

#23 Brian MacDonald
: 6' 0"; Senior; R/R
: P/DH

#24 David Leiderman
: 6' 3"; Redshirt Sophomore; R/R
: IF

#27 Dalton Rouleau
: 5' 10"; Graduate Student; R/R
: SS

#28 Chris Bonk
: 6' 5"; Junior; R/R
: P

#29 Bowie Matteson
: 6' 3"; Junior; R/R
: P