Hempstead, N.Y. – The Hofstra Softball team picked up a pair of wins in its first two home games of the season, topping Boston University, 7-2, and Massachusetts, 2-0, on Saturday afternoon at Bill Edwards Stadium, with Head Coach Larissa Anderson picking up her 100th career coaching victory with the win over the Terriers. The Pride is hosting a total of five games at Bill Edwards Stadium this weekend as part of the St. John's Invitational, with weather altering the tournament's schedule.
 
Hofstra (12-7) hit three home runs on the day, including freshman Kimberly Wert's game-deciding pinch-hit two-run shot in the bottom of the sixth against UMass.
 
Game 1:
 
The Pride jumped out to a 2-0 lead over the Terriers (8-13) in the bottom of the first inning, with a two-run home run from senior Brielle Pietrafesa, her first of the season.
 
Hofstra then broke the game open with a five-run second inning, all with two outs. Senior Megan Patierno reached on a throwing error with one out, advancing to third on a single from classmate Kaitlyne Musa. After the second out, sophomore Kristin Hallam doubled down the left-field line to bring in a run. Senior Brittany Allocca then sent a three-run blast to left-center. Pietrafesa followed up with a base hit, before senior Sarah Edwards reached on another error. With freshman Imani Myint pinch-running, Myint and Pietrafesa completed the double steal, with Pietrafesa stealing home to cap the scoring outburst.
 
The Terriers got on the board in the seventh with two outs on an RBI single and a wild pitch, but the Pride staved off any threat of a rally.
 
Freshman pitcher Sophie Dandola (6-3) allowed just four hits in the complete-game victory.
 
Game 2:
 
Sophomore pitcher Sarah Cornell allowed just two hits against the Minutewomen (10-9), as classmate Kristin Hallam went 3-for-3 from the plate in the win.
 
Cornell and the Hofstra defense stifled UMass, with Cornell throwing nine strikeouts in her fourth strikeout of the season and the Pride's seventh overall.
 
Junior Courtney Scarpato hid a lead-off single in the bottom of the sixth, before advancing to second on redshirt-junior Lydia Witkowski's short slap-hit. With two outs, Wert came in to pinch-hit and sent a blast over the left-field fence to score Scarpato and give Hofstra the 2-0 lead.
 
Cornell pitched a clean top of the seventh to seal the win.
 
Notes:
-Allocca, Edwards and Wert are all tied for the team lead with two home runs.
-The Pride doubled its season home run total Saturday.
-Anderson is in her fourth season as the head coach for Hofstra after taking over for Hall of Famer Bill Edwards.
-Allocca now has 98 career walks and is four away from tying the Hofstra program record.