The Hofstra Pride softball team continued their dominance in conference with a pair of wins in a double-header against Delaware. Hofstra won the first of a three-game road set by 6-0, and the second by a 13-5 score in six frames.
In the first outing, it was Sarah Cornell who blazed through the Fightin’ Blue Hens’ batting order, allowing just two hits in a shutout performance.
Cornell struck out 10 batters – almost half of the outs she recorded – and walked just one.
It was the sixth time this season the right-hander has struck out 10 or more batters and the second time she’s done so in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play.
Cornell extended her CAA lead in strikeouts with this performance.
Megan Patierno and Brielle Pietrafesa provided the offense with home runs.
Pietrafesa also swatted a double, collecting four total RBIs on the front end of the double-header.
The second contest was a much more heated affair. Brittany Allocca started the festivities with a two-run shot, but Delaware quickly tied things up in the bottom half of the first and then tacked on two more runs in the second. Hofstra’s offense erupted in the third inning, scoring nine runs.
The Pride chased starter Sarah Piening with an array of singles, doubles and stolen bases.
Hofstra would add another pair of runs in garbage time to win 13-5.
Hofstra’s offensive prowess masked Sophie Dandola’s struggles on the mound. The freshman pitcher allowed five runs in four innings on 11 hits with no strikeouts.
The five runs against her are tied for the most she has ever surrendered in a collegiate game.
Allocca is heating up for the Pride offensively. She’s extended her on-base streak to eight games and has raised her batting average by nearly 50 points over that stretch.
She is just one home run shy of tying a career-high for a season with 14 games left to play.
Pietrafesa also became just the 14th player in Hofstra program history to record a double-digit home run campaign. The senior has set career-highs in nearly every offensive category and currently leads the Pride in the traditional triple-crown stats (batting average, home runs and RBIs).
