By Mike Rudin – SPORTS EDITOR
Back-to-back shutouts by the dynamic pitching duo of Morgan Lashley and Taylor Pirone secured a 2-0 start in conference play against the UNC-W Seahawks in a doubleheader on Saturday. The Hofstra Pride burned UNC-W in game one, 8-0, and then again in game two, 3-0, to improve Hofstra’s record to 10-7-1 overall.
Game one consisted of Hofstra taking control from the very get-go with a four-run rally in the top of the first inning to give Lashley more than enough run support.
Three consecutive walks set the stage for Hofstra’s first run. UNC-W’s starter, Casey Roland, threw a wild pitch and all the Pride runners advanced – Caryn Bailey reached home plate off the wild pitch.
With one out and Hofstra runners on second and third, Lacey Clark walked to fill the bases yet again and five pitches later, Erin Trippi walked to drive in the second run. She got the RBI walk once Kim Smith stepped on home plate.
Walks became a huge issue for Seahawks’ starter Roland as Michaela Transue reached first base on another RBI walk that drove in Brittany Allocca. Then, Megan Patierno stepped up at the plate and shot one to right field far enough to bring Clark home for a sacrifice fly.
UNC-W managed to pull out of the inning with no more damage but the Pride worked with an early 4-0 lead without one hit in the top of the first.
Lashley cruised nearly the entire time on the mound, she had one minor hiccup early on in the first, allowing one hit and the runner to steal second to get into scoring position until she got out of the inning with no damage.
Afterwards, no base runners would pose as a threat until the bottom of the fourth inning when after letting up a base hit to Rowland, Nella Chamblee threaten the shutout with a double that pushed Rowland to third. With both runners in scoring position and two outs on the board, Lashley got out of the jam with a foul and keep UNC-W scoreless.
The top of the fifth rolled around and Hofstra struck again with two runs to add insurance to drain any hopes for UNC-W.
After back-to-back singles and swiped bases, Chloe Fitzgerald landed on third and Caryn Bailey on second in scoring position. With one out, Allocca laid down the sacrifice bunt that moved Bailey to third and drove Fitzgerald home.
Clark came up with two outs and one runner on third to smack a single and Bailey scored for a 6-0 lead.
UNC-W tried to start a rally in the bottom of the fifth but no prevail. Lashley got out of the inning with runners on first and second with a flyball caught in centerfield for the final out and push to the top of the sixth.
Bailey topped a cherry on the game with a two-run bomb that pushed Hofstra’s lead to the final score of 8-0.
Lashley needed three more outs for the shutout-win and executed that task flawlessly with a 1-2-3 inning, including two strikeouts to cap off her performance.
Lashley pitched six scoreless innings with six hits allowed, no runs, one walk, while striking out seven Seahawks in game one. She received the win to go 6-1 on the season and improved her earned run average to 1.44.
Taylor Pirone came in to start game two of Saturday’s doubleheader for the Pride and mirrored Lashley’s shutout with one of her own.
She finished the game with a two-hitter in seven scoreless innings with zero walks while striking out six batters.
Similar to the first game, Hofstra started out strong with a multiple-run first inning, the Pride scored three off the bat against the Seahawks.
UNC-W’s starter Sarah Davis went all seven innings after a rocky start in the first when Fitzgerald and Bailey slapped back-to-back singles to start the game.
Smith came up to the plate and contributed with a sacrifice bunt to move the runners over to second and third. Britany Allocca reaped the benefits with a clutch two-run double that pushed the Pride out in front early with a 2-0 lead.
Things continued to not work out for the Seahawks as a fielding error allowed Clark to reach first then Trippi walked to load the bases.
With one out, Michaela Transue stepped up with a clutch RBI base hit, up the middle, and squeezed one more insurance run out of UNC-W for the rest of the game. But the three runs were more than enough for the Pride starter.
Pirone set the tone early, striking out the side, in the bottom of the first to display her power and control on the mound.
She had a perfect game going through the first four innings, striking out five in the first twelve at-bats spread over four innings.
The perfect game disappeared once Claudia Spinelli fired a single in the bottom of the fifth for the Seahawks. Shortly after a hit-by-pitch and another base hit, Pirone found herself in a jam with the bases juiced and no outs.
Pirone gathered some breathing room with a strikeout for the first out of the inning, then a fielder’s choice to get the out at home to prevent a run and get the second out.
With the bases load and one out left to get by unscathed, Pirone gets a groundout to end the inning and continued her scoreless work to into the sixth.
Three straight groundouts ended the sixth inning and Pirone shutdown the seventh to go seven scoreless innings. She improved her record to 4-6 on the season and cut her ERA to 2.42.
Hofstra remained an offensive threat throughout the game with 11 hits in the game. Caryn Bailey had the best offensive day for the Pride, hitting 3-for-4 in the game with one run scored and Chloe Fitzgerald finished game two hitting 2-for-4 and a run scored.
Britany Allocca finished hitting 2-for-4 with two RBIs to lead the team in converting runs. Erin Trippi made strides, going 1-for-3 and a walk.
Hofstra and UNC-W will compete again tomorrow for game three in Wilmington as the Pride set to go for the series-sweep against the Seahawks. The game is scheduled to start at 12:00 p.m.
