The Hofstra softball team capped off the weekend in impressive fashion, picking up another pair of wins over St. John’s University and Binghamton University to complete a perfect 4-0 weekend.
It was offense that carried the afternoon for the Pride, with the offense exploding for 26 hits, 19 runs and four home runs across the pair of games. Hofstra beat St. John’s 10-6 in Queens before running home and beating Binghamton 9-1 in just five innings.
This weekend marked the Pride’s first game action in New York after spending the first few weeks of the season down in Florida. Nice weather doesn’t appeal to everyone, and it clearly didn’t agree with the Hofstra bats, which had been snoozing for much of the season before this weekend. The Pride scored more runs this weekend (a combined 28 including Saturday’s games) than in their last 10 games combined down in the Sunshine State.
Much like Saturday, Hofstra jumped out early in Game 1 on Sunday, with Kristin Hallam leading off the game with a solo shot to put Hofstra ahead.
Hallam would knock in another run in the fourth inning with a RBI double, and then Hofstra would break the game wide open in the sixth inning with four runs, three of which coming on a three-run homer from Brielle Pietrafesa.
The Red Storm would respond with three runs in the bottom of the sixth, so Hofstra went out and tacked on another four runs in the away half of the seventh inning. Pietrafesa was in the mix yet again, with a RBI single kicking off the scoring in the final frame.
St. John’s touched up reliever Courtney Scarpato, on in relief of Sarah Cornell, for another three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, but Scarpato was able to work out of it and lock up the win for the Pride in a game that was tighter than it may have had any right to be.
That was hardly an issue in the final game of the afternoon, where the Pride returned to Bill Edwards Stadium to host the Bearcats from Binghamton.
Freshman Sophie Dandola got the ball in Game 2 and twirled a gem, picking up her seventh win of the season with a complete-game performance, allowing just one run on five hits.
With Dandola taming the Bearcats on the hill, Hofstra jumped on Binghamton pitcher Rozlyn Price right off the bat, with a single from Sarah Edwards knocking in the first run of the game in the opening inning.
Hofstra would score at least one run in every inning they came to bat, tacking on two more runs apiece in the second and third innings before a four-run fourth inning put the mercy rule into effect. After Dandola worked a scoreless top of the fifth, the game was called and Hofstra put the finishing touches on a perfect weekend with a convincing win.
Pietrafesa continued her hot weekend with a 2-3 day at the dish, knocking in three runs and hitting her third home run of the weekend.
Megan Patierno also homered against the Bearcats, and led the team with four RBI.
Hofstra improved to 14-7 with the pair of victories, while St. John’s fell to 7-7 and Binghamton to 3-10. Heading into the weekend, the Pride had been on a three-game losing streak; they’ve now won four in a row and seem to be locked in offensively.
Next up for the Pride will be a doubleheader at Penn State University on Wednesday, March 21, with first pitches set for 5 and 7:30 p.m.
Hofstra will open up Colonial Athletic Association action on Saturday, March 24 at Bill Edwards Stadium with a doubleheader against UNC-Wilmington.
