By Dan Powell
With just a week remaining before their first conference game against George Mason, the Pride stayed hot this past weekend, taking two out of three games from St. Peter’s College.
Hofstra opened the series by sweeping a doubleheader in Hempstead on Saturday. It was the Hofstra offense that led the way yet again for the Pride, bailing out a pitching staff that struggled on the weekend. Junior outfielder Dave Cole set the pace for the Pride lineup, going 5-for-5, including Hofstra’s first two home runs on the season. Still, things were close in the first game of the twin-bill as the Pride’s 8-run lead dwindled to just one after the Peacocks blasted a pair of two-run home runs in the 9th to close the gap to 13-12 before senior John Fuhrmann struck out the last batter to seal the victory.
Some of Hofstra’s young players shined brightly in Game Two of the doubleheader. Freshman pitcher Drew Luedtke allowed just five hits and one run in five innings to earn his second victory of the season as freshman third baseman Matt Prokopowicz sparked the offense, going 3-for-5 with two RBI in the second game. The strong performance continued a stellar first year for the Massapequa native, as Prokopowicz now leads the Pride with a .455 batting average on the season. It also helped earn Hofstra a 9-5 win, extending their winning streak to five at the time.
The hot streak would come to an end in the series finale, however, as the Pride’s pitching fizzled again. Though sophomore Rob DiFalco pitched well in relief, allowing just one run in the final three innings, it was too late as seniors Patrick Rogers and Ryan Dunn and freshman Ryan Radke combined to give up 14 runs in six innings as the Pride dropped to 5-7 on the season.
Radke had the toughest outing, giving up six runs on two hits and three walks while setting down just one batter after replacing Rogers at the start of the fourth inning. Despite Radke’s awful line-score, it may be the outings of the two seniors that will raise more concern from head coach Chris Dotolo, as the young team will need its veteran arms to shine during conference play if they are going to reach their goal of a conference tournament birth.
The offense, on the other hand, has been a pleasant surprise. A squad that lost three of its top run producers from a year ago put up 31 runs in the three game set. Underclassmen such as Prokopowicz, freshman infielder Dion Pouncil and shortstop Chris Mentrasti have been major contributors already, with each one batting .400 or better on the season.
Such strong efforts could prove vital if the Pride continues to struggle on the mound. The bats already bailed out the pitching staff in the 13-12 victory against St. Peter’s but it is tough to expect an experience line-up to continue to carry the team. Hofstra cannot continue to spot opponents 10-plus runs a game or they are going to struggle mightily in a strong Colonial Athletic Association.
The Pride, who were picked to finish 10th out of 11 teams in the conference by opposing coaches, will get a firsthand look at what it will take to win in the CAA this year next weekend. The Pride will host George Mason in a three game set to open their conference schedule. The Patriots are a talented squad, sitting at an even 5-5 on the season including an impressive victory over the No. 1 Clemson. The series will start with a 3 p.m. game at University Field.