Farmville, Va. – Hofstra Softball picked up a pair of wins in a doubleheader at Longwood on Saturday afternoon, taking the first game, 4-1, and the second, 9-7.

Junior Brittany Allocca had a strong day at the plate for the Pride (7-5), going 3-for-6 with a home run, a double and five RBIs. Classmate Megan Patierno went 3-for-4 in Game 2 with four RBIs.

GAME 1

The Pride came out firing in the first game of the weekend, taking a 3-0 lead in the top of the first. Freshman Kristin Hallam hit a lead-off single, before junior Brielle Pietrafesa's sacrifice bunt moved Hallam to second. Patierno then reached on a fielding error and advanced to second on a passed ball to put runners on second and third. Allocca then brought Hallam and Patierno home with a three-run home run, her first long ball of the season.

The Lancers (5-10) threatened in the bottom of the third, loading the bases with two outs on a single, a batter hit by a pitch and a walk, but a fly-out got Hofstra out of the inning unscathed.

Longwood capitalized in the fourth. Krista Kelly doubled to right field, before single from Justina Augustine advanced Kelly to third. Augustine stole second, and a sacrifice fly brought Kelly home with Augustine still in scoring position. Freshman pitcher Sarah Cornell struck out the next batter for the second out, and a foul-out ended the inning with no further damage.

Senior Christie Sinacori pinch-hit in the top of the seventh and was walked. Freshman Sam Tomasetti then pinch-ran for Sinacori and came home on a double from sophomore Courtney Scarpato to seal the victory for the Pride. Scarpato was 2-for-2 in Game 1.

Cornell (6-0) remained undefeated, pitching her fifth complete game, allowing five hits and one run while striking out four and walking three.

GAME 2

The Lancers struck first in Game 2, taking a 3-0 lead in the second. Karleigh Donovan reached on a fielding error, and a double from Augustine brought Donovan home. A walk and a batter hit by a pitch loaded the bases, and Destiny Martinez's single brought in a pair of runs.

Hofstra then answered in the third. Tomasetti and Scarpato walked, and Pietrafesa's double down the right-field line brought in Tomasetti. Patierno then hit her second homer of the season to bring in three more runs and give the Pride a 4-3 lead.

Hofstra extended its lead in the fourth, scoring two more runs. Junior Nikki Michalowski was hit by a pitch to get on base, and Scarpato walked again. A wild pitch put them on second and third, respectively, before Hallam reached on a fielding error to bring Michalowski and Scarpato home.

The Lancers pulled a run back in the bottom of the fourth on a Kaylynn Batten RBI double to right center.

Patierno opened the fifth inning with a single and came home on an RBI double from Allocca for a 7-4 Pride lead.

Three singles with no outs in the bottom of the fifth scored another run for Longwood, before a fly-out brought another home to make it a one-run game.

Hallam singled up the middle with one out in the top of the fifth. Pietrafesa then reached on a fielder's choice, but there was an error on the play, allowing Hallam to advance to third. Patierno also benefitted from a fielder's choice, and Hallam came home on the play. Senior Lacey Clark put the ball in play, getting on base as Pietrafesa was thrown out at third for the second out. Allocca's single brought in another run for a 9-6 lead.

A pair of hits with no outs in the bottom of the seventh put runners on the corners for Longwood, and one came home on a sacrifice fly as the Lancers attempted to catch Hofstra. Another fly-out served as the second out, with a runner still on, and freshman pitcher Alyssa Irons fanned the last batter to preserve the win for Hofstra, picking up her first career save.

Senior Jessica Peslak recorded her first win of the season, allowing six hits and just one earned run in 4.0 innings pitched.

Hofstra closes the three-game series with Longwood on Sunday at noon.