A hard-fought battle led the Hofstra baseball team to an early lead and an 8-4 victory over Towson University Tigers on Friday, April 22, at Schuerholz Park. The Pride advances to an 8-5 record in conference play and a 17-15 overall record as they remain in third in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) rankings.
The Tigers came out strong in the first, allowing only one hit and no runs, and then drove a run in during the bottom of the opening inning. Towson’s Danny Beccara singled to shortstop and proceeded to third after a wild pitch snuck past Pride catcher Kevin Bruggeman; from there, Elijah Dickerson singled up the middle to drive in the run, ending the inning 1-0 in favor of the Tigers.
Hofstra went on a tear in the second, scoring five runs. Bruggeman got things started with a single to right center field, and he then advanced to third off a single from Jake Liberatore. Pride second baseman Santino Rosso flew out to right-center, driving in Bruggeman and advancing Liberatore, tying the score 1-1. Ryan Morash singled to right field to drive in Liberatore, and Morash advanced to second on the throw as Hofstra took the lead.
From then on, Towson made several defensive mistakes, as Morash scored on a throwing error. Tigers’ pitcher Nolan Bolt walked Anthony D’Onofrio and was promptly subbed for reliever Cam Clark. Hofstra left fielder Will Kennedy singled to right field, advancing D’Onofrio to third and batting in Michael Florides, giving the Pride a 4-1 lead. Steve Harrington flew out to right-center driving in D’Onofrio for the fifth and final run of the inning.
The Pride stood tall behind starting pitcher Mark Faello, as they went three-and-out in both the bottom of the second and third innings, showcasing excellent defense. The Pride struggled to score in the third, fourth and fifth, which led to the Tigers’ attempt to mount a comeback, as Dickerson slammed a solo homer to left-center field in the fourth and Burke Camper scored off a double in the fifth, shrinking the Pride’s lead to 5-3.
Hofstra traded blows with Towson in the sixth, as D’Onofrio reached the plate on an error and Dickerson solo homered to right field, both players crossing the plate for the second time this game. With the Pride leading 6-4, Faello was taken out in favor of reliever Michael O’Hanlon after 5.1 innings of play, giving up four runs on five hits. Faello recorded five strikeouts and threw 96 pitches.
From there, the Pride shut down the Tigers’ offense and combatted it with some of their own. To kick off the top of the seventh, Liberatore was beaned by a pitch and advanced to second after Rosso grounded out. Morash reached first on a fielding error by Tigers second-baseman Jordan Peyton, his second of the day, and the Pride loaded the bases with a single from Florides. D’Onofrio lined out to right-field to bring in Liberatore, making the score 7-4.
After another fruitless frame for the Tigers, Harrington nailed a solo homer in the top of the eighth to extend Hofstra’s lead to 8-4. O’Hanlon shut down the Tigers in the closing innings to secure the four-run victory and nabbed the save, striking out six of the thirteen batters he faced. Faello got his fifth win and O’Hanlon took his fourth save of the season.
Hofstra’s series against Towson will continue on Saturday, April 23, at Schuerholz Park in Towson, Maryland. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Jon Reiss/Hofstra Athletics
