The Hofstra Pride baseball team dropped to 2-7 on the season after losing to Iona College 4-2 on Friday, March 8. The Pride offense was shut down by the Gaels’ starting pitcher Chris Dodrill. He fired 4 2/3 innings, allowing only one earned run on three hits. Michael James was on the mound for Hofstra and surrendered four earned runs in six innings, while striking out eight.
Hofstra had a chance to take an early lead when they had runners on second and third in the bottom of the first inning. Jimmy Joyce walked and Austin Gauthier singled, but Dodrill got out of the jam by striking out Vito Friscia and getting Parker Quinn to fly out. It was Iona who got on the board first in the third inning when Sam Punzi hit a two-RBI double to put the Gaels up 2-0.
Hofstra threatened Iona again in the fifth inning when they loaded the bases with Friscia stepping to the plate. Friscia brought in the Pride’s first run with an RBI groundout, which made the score 3-1. Quinn then came up with a chance to redeem himself after stranding two runners in the first, but he could not capitalize. Paul Sullivan came in to relieve Dodrill and struck out Quinn. After Iona tacked on another run to increase their lead again, the Pride came right back with a run of their own from an Anthony D’Onofrio RBI single. That would be the final run scored for Hofstra.
The Pride was not able to get much going on offense, as they registered only four total hits. They had multiple scoring chances throughout the game, but went only 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10 runners on base.
For Iona, their pitching was strong game and their offense capitalized on their scoring chances. The Gaels earned their first win of the season and are now 1-10. Punzi, a designated hitter, had a strong game, driving in two runs. Also for Iona, Fran Kinsey and Jon Budesa both went 1-for-4 with one RBI.
Despite the loss for the Pride, Gauthier continued his hot streak and recorded another hit. He finished the day batting 1-for-4 and is now hitting .296 on the season. D’Onofrio has also been swinging the bat very well for Hofstra and continued to do so against Iona. The freshman is now batting .350 in seven games after his RBI single in the sixth inning.
The Pride will be on the road again on Saturday, March 9, when they head to the Bronx to take on Fordham University. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Image Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics