West Long Branch, NJ – The Hofstra softball bats were held in check on Friday against Monmouth, as the Pride suffered a pair of defeats to the Hawks in a CAA doubleheader from MU Softball Park. The Pride dropped game one, 1-0, before falling 7-3 in game two against Monmouth.
Hofstra's record drops to 6-16 and 4-4 in league play, while Monmouth improves to 12-17 and 5-2 in the CAA.
Game 1: Monmouth 1, Hofstra 0
Starting pitchers
Julia Apsel and Billie Kerwood went pitch-for-pitch in the first game of Friday's doubleheader, allowing a combined seven hits between the two as neither side could solve the excellent pitchers from the circle. Monmouth threatened to break the deadlock in multiple innings against the Pride, including a bases loaded situation in the first inning with no outs, but each time Apsel and the Hofstra defense came through to thwart the Hawks as eight Monmouth baserunners were stranded throughout the game. The Pride also had its chances to score, but they were stymied by Kerwood's nine strikeouts.
The breakthrough came in the bottom of the seventh inning. With two outs and the game seemingly heading into extra innings, Savannah Simons was hit by a pitch to reach base, and Mackenzie Bloss drilled a 1-2 pitch all the way to the outfield wall, allowing Simons to round the bases for the walk-off.
Olivia Malinowski and
Becca Vaillancourt delivered Hofstra's two hits on the day, while
Aliya Catanzarita,
Gianna Iaquinto, and
Chelsea Manto all drew walks in game one. Apsel had another fine outing in the circle despite the loss, pitching 6.2 innings and striking out six opposing batters.
Game 2: Monmouth 7, Hofstra 3
Unlike the day's first game, it only took two batters for a run to come on the board, as Vaillancourt sent the first pitch she saw well over the left field wall for the go-ahead run. The Pride added another pair of runs in the third inning on a Malinowski double to the left-center wall and a Catanzarita single through the middle to make it 3-0 Pride early against the Hawks. The lead didn't last long, however, as the hosts plated five runs in the bottom half of the inning to pull in front 5-3. Monmouth tacked on another two runs in the fifth inning on a two-run home run to make it a 7-3 ballgame.
Malinowski and Vaillancourt both tallied two hits against the Hawks, while Catanzarita and
Chelsea Villar also recorded hits, and
Mackenzie Fitzgerald drew a walk.
Marisa Ogden and
Anna Butler picked up one strikeout each in the second game.
Hofstra's series against Monmouth concludes on Sunday at noon.
NOTES:
-With four doubles and four home runs, Vaillancourt's eight extra-base hits surpasses her total of seven from last season.
-Hofstra's all-time record is now 4-3 against Monmouth.
