Hempstead, N.Y. – Freshman outfielder Brielle Pietrafesa hit a two-out game-winning RBI single in the 10th inning to lift Hofstra to a 6-5 come-from-behind win over Big 10-member Northwestern on Tuesday afternoon at Hofstra Softball Stadium.

Senior catcher Erin Trippi hit a three-run home run with two outs in the sixth to ease a three-run deficit and the Pride again negated a late Northwestern lead when pinch-runner Rachel Simodejka scored on a wild pitch in the ninth before Pietrafesa's walk-off hit the next inning. Senior pitcher Morgan Lashley struck out seven in seven innings of relief to help Hofstra improve to 12-7-1 on the season.

Lashley allowed just five hits and was supported by junior outfielder Caryn Bailey's home run to help the right-hander improve to 8-1 on the season. Northwestern fell to 14-11.

Trippi's first home run of the season off Northwestern's Kristen Wood helped send the game to extra innings. Down 4-1, Trippi hit her 18th career home run to move into 13th place on the team's all-time list.

Northwestern's Andrea DiPrima hit two solo home runs, including a shot to right center in the first and left center in the fourth to help stake Wood to an early lead. Amy Letourneau's RBI double in the fourth extended Northwestern's lead to 3-0, though Bailey's third home run of the season to lead off the fourth put Hofstra on the scoreboard. Bailey's 19th career home run moved her past Crystal Boyd (1991-94) for 12th most in program history.

In a matchup of two teams that entered the week ranked in the top-30 of the RPI listings, the teams battled back and forth. Wood threw 152 pitches in going nine innings in the tough-luck no-decision.

Amy Letourneau, who went 1-for-3 with a RBI, took over in the circle in the 10th. Trippi worked a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a ground out. A walk put two runners on, though Letourneau got a strike out to nearly escape trouble. But Pietrafesa pulled a two-strike single to left that scored Trippi and ended the second-longest Hofstra game of the season. The longest game was an 11-inning tie at Florida Atlantic on March 8.

Letourneau fell to 7-8. Lashley gave Hofstra a strong relief outing in the battle of the bullpens with the Davidson, North Carolina native throwing 84 of her 120 pitches for strikes.

Bailey's one-out walk in the sixth facilitated Hofstra's rally. A force out seemed to dampen Hofstra's rally hopes, though freshman Brittany Allocca walked to set up Trippi's pulled home run between the light pole and the flags.

The teams exchanged zeros until the ninth when Julia Kuhn hit a leadoff home run to center. Hofstra responded in the bottom of the inning sophomore pinch-hitter Christie Sinacori hit a leadoff single. Simodejka pinch ran and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. She aggressively took third on a passed ball and scored on a two-out wild pitch with Allocca batting to tie the score again.

Pietrafesa garnered her second career walk-off single. Her first was a seventh inning game-winning hit against McNeese State in a pinch-hitting role on Feb 22.

The Pride will host Rutgers in a doubleheader on Wednesday at 3 p.m. at Hofstra Softball Stadium in facing a second Big 10 opponent in as many days.