The Hofstra Pride softball team completed a four-game weekend sweep of the University of Massachusetts Lowell at Bill Edwards Stadium on Sunday, March 21. They were led by another strong pitching performance by Madison Burns in game one and an offensive explosion in game two.
Burns threw her second complete game in as many days, allowing one run on five hits and striking out six.
“I thought [Madison] Burns did a great job of setting the tone that first game,” said Hofstra head coach Jay Miller. “[She] came out and threw a lights out two-hitter and really, I thought, did a great job for this whole weekend.”
After allowing that single run, Hofstra’s offense erupted for three runs in the third inning to take the lead. Kristin Hallam singled to score Devyn Losco in the bottom of the third, and then scored on an error off the bat of Chelsea Manto. Manto later scored on a groundout by Jaycee Ruberti, and Brianna Morse launched a home run in the fourth to give the Pride some breathing room in the 4-1 win.
Game two was much of the same. After Annabella Pisapia allowed a run in the third inning, Hofstra’s offense answered once again by scoring four runs. Meghan Giordano worked a bases-loaded walk to bring Hallam in for the first run of the game. Angelina Ioppolo hit a sac fly to score Manto, and Alexis Goeke stayed hot with a single up the middle to score Giordano and Ruberti.
In the fourth inning, the Pride added two more runs with a double to score Manto and Kayla Wilson. Nikki Mullin came on in relief to secure the 7-4 Hofstra win and the four-game sweep.
Despite the two wins, the Pride left a number of runners on bases over the weekend.
“I was a little disappointed at the middle of our lineup which has normally been pretty consistent for us driving in runs,” Miller said. “We left a lot of people on yesterday and a lot of people on today as well, so I was a little disappointed there.”
At second base, Morse made a big difference for the Pride, improving their fielding across both games. After a strong weekend, the freshman may be solidifying her spot in the lineup on a weekly basis.
“I thought [Brianna] Morse did a great job this weekend at second base,” Miller said. “We’ve been sort of looking for somebody who’s gonna be able to win that spot for us and I thought she came out and did a great job for us, both defensively and she swung the bat a little bit for us.”
The series sweep brought the Pride’s record to 6-4, with a winning streak of five consecutive games. The Pride will be in action once again on Saturday, March 27 on the road against the University of Delaware for another doubleheader, and the first in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play.
Photo Courtesy of Adam Flash/The Hofstra Chronicle
