In the rubber game, the Hofstra University baseball team’s late rally fell short in a 5-4 loss against the College of Charleston on Sunday, March 8. The Pride nearly made a comeback with a two-run rally in the bottom of the ninth inning, but Cougars pitcher Kurt Rogers put the Pride away. With the loss, Hofstra fell to 1-8 on the season, and 1-2 in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play.
Hofstra’s JJ DeVito hit four of the Pride’s nine hits of the day, tallying a triple, stolen bag and RBI in the loss.
Freshman Nick Reese got the ball for the Pride and saw the largest workload of his career, tossing six innings, allowing five runs on six hits, while sitting down four. Only one of Reese’s runs were earned. The Jefferson, Pennsylvania, native was tagged with the loss
Charleston’s Kaden Myers twirled 4.1 innings of relief work out of the bullpen for the win, allowing no runs on two hits.
The Pride opened the scoring in the bottom of the first frame. DeVito led off and took the second pitch from Carson Bryant to right field for a base knock. CJ Griggs moved DeVito to third on a double to the opposite field. Gabriel Melara capitalized on a dropped third strike, taking first on a throwing error by Charleston catcher Dylan Johnson, loading the bases. Michael Craig brought DeVito home on a fielder’s choice to second base.
Reese allowed baserunners in the first two innings but was able to get out of trouble until the Cougars finally broke through in the top of the third inning due to Pride misplays. Hofstra shortstop Sam Leonard made a throwing error on Will Tippett’s contact, and the Pride followed with a second error in the inning, which put two runners on. Daniel Escalante couldn’t corral the ball at the hot corner on the ball off Ethan Plyler’s bat. Johnson knocked home the first run of the day on a double to center field. The wheels continued to fall off for the Pride as Reese’s wild pitch scored Plyler. Alex LaCoste left the yard on a 1-0 pitch to right field to give the Cougars a 4-0 lead early in the game.
Hofstra got one back in the bottom of the fourth. Melara led off the inning with a double to left field, and Craig followed with a single up the middle, forcing a pitching change. Myers came out of the bullpen and instantly tossed a wild pitch to move Craig into scoring position. Escalante grounded out to shortstop, scoring Melara to cut the deficit to two runs.
The long ball continued to be an issue for the Pride. In the top of the sixth frame, Stow Rogers hit a blast to deep left field off Reese to give the Cougars a 5-2 lead into the seventh inning.
Brayden Gregg pitched for the Pride in the seventh, allowing a baserunner in his first inning of work. Through 2.2 frames, Gregg struck out one and allowed two hits, while holding the Cougars scoreless.
Hofstra fought down to the wire, rallying in the ninth inning. Nick Biddle drilled a one strike pitch to left center field – his first homer this season. With two outs, Danny Corona worked a four-pitch pinch-hit walk, setting up Giovanni Bausone for an infield single. DeVito’s fourth hit of the ballgame came at a much-needed time. He singled up the middle to score Corona. Despite the late rally, the Cougars forced a ground-out to end the contest.
The Pride take a detour from CAA play for a mid-week home matchup against Rider University on Wednesday, March 11. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.
