By Tim Robertson

For two years I’ve had the esteemed privilege of covering and following Hofstra softball through two spectacular seasons. Covering a sports team can be hard when they don’t win often, but with evidence of a 39-10 record this season and a 14-game winning streak, that hasn’t posed much of a problem.

Before I get into what made this team fantastic to follow, here’s the latest from a busy week.

For the second consecutive week the team received votes in the USA Today poll and rests at 31st in the nation in RPI. The team swept through George Mason at home last week on the back of who else but Kayleigh Lotti. Lotti tossed another no-hitter on Sunday, which followed a shutout performance on Saturday. In two wins, Lotti fanned a dozen Patriot batters for her 17th win of the season.

Thanks to the sweep, the Pride will host the CAA tournament this weekend at the Hofstra Softball Stadium. Although the Pride will have played Towson before the Chronicle hits the stands, they play again on Friday, and possibly Saturday for the CAA championship and an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament. Hofstra vies for its nation-best 11th consecutive conference title.

A conference championship would also secure Hofstra the second best winning percentage in team history since joining Division I, and one win shy of the team record for wins heading into the national tournament.

The Pride not only will ride Kayleigh Lotti into the postseason, but also pitchers Courtney Oliver, Joanna Kralowetz and Sara Michalowski. The four combined for one of the top five ERA marks in the country. To put hard facts to Hofstra’s pitching and defensive dominance, the team hasn’t allowed more than two runs since it beat Baylor 8-7 on March 9.

As the Pride go for team honors this weekend, it earned more than a few individual awards at the CAA banquet on Wednesday. Coach Bill Edwards picked up his 10th conference Coach of the Year award, and Lotti nabbed her second consecutive Pitcher of the Year trophy.

The Pride placed six others on first team all-conference. Joining Lotti were first baseman Michele DePasquale, second baseman Casey Fee, center fielder Erika Bernstein, Oliver and Michalowski, a freshman who saw time as a pitcher, third baseman and designated hitter.

When teams win the conference year after year and bring home individual hardware or host the NCAA Regionals, the work is done for me. Sure I have to dig into the media guide to find out historic winning percentages or Lotti’s average strikeouts per decision, but that’s about it.

When a team wins a game on a walk-off inside-the-park home run – as Casey Fee hit earlier this year – or a pitcher breaks the career record for strikeouts – Lotti – or makes spectacular grab after fantastic scoop at first base – DePasquale – or is as approachable of a coach as Edwards is, the job is easy.

What also makes the team exciting to watch and easy to talk to after games, is that they don’t lose at home. In my two years covering the team, they’ve lost one game at home – and that was early last season. Which means one thing: everyone should come out for the games this weekend.

Interviewing coaches for profiles or even writing columns on a somewhat regular basis is demanding, and seems like work most of the time, but writing about this team is different.

I thoroughly enjoyed keeping score, taking notes and snapping pictures all at the same time.

Watching a team this good – both in skill and personality – made me enjoy doing what I do.

For that, I owe a tremendous thank you to coach Edwards and the players on the last two teams who have made my experience more than worth it.

Even though this is the final issue of the Chronicle and my beat is done, I’ll still see you at the ballpark. I can’t miss what this team will accomplish next.