The Hofstra University softball team faced a heartbreaking loss to College of Charleston in their opening game of the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Championship by a 4-2 final score. The Pride advanced to the losers’ bracket following the loss.
Hofstra led 2-1 going into the top of the seventh inning before No 5. Charleston rallied with three runs to seal the game.
Emma Falen started in the circle for the Pride. Through five innings, she allowed one earned run on five hits, striking out three. Madison Steppe appeared in relief, pitching 1.1 innings and allowing two earned runs on three hits.
The Pride struck first in the bottom of the second, scoring two runs on three hits. Chelsea Villar continued her fantastic season, leading off the inning with a home run to left field. Ryleigh Smith walked and advanced to second after a sacrifice bunt from Gemma D’Orazio. Lily Yepez placed runners on the corners with a single up the middle. Mackenzie Fitzgerald followed with a single of her own to score Smith.
The game remained 2-0 until the Cougars trimmed the lead in the top of the fifth inning with one run. Karlee Hughes began the inning with a triple to right-center field. Julia Sitterding followed with a sacrifice fly to bring Charleston within one. Bronwyn Conroy singled, and Austy Miller doubled to place runners on second and third. Falen escaped the inning after Halle Cannon grounded out to second base.
Charleston entered the top of the seventh inning down 2-1, but they did not want to advance to the losers’ bracket. Conroy led off the inning with a single to left field, reaching second on a fielding error from D’Orazio and third on a wild pitch. Leela Langston scored Conroy on a sacrifice fly to right field. Miller continued the momentum with a single up the middle, prompting Susan Cassidy-Lyke to bring in Jillian Locher in relief for Steppe. Cannon broke the game open immediately with a two-run home run to right field. Locher escaped further trouble, getting Samantha Horn and Savannah Scott to ground out to Alanna Morse.
With three outs remaining, the Pride entered the bottom of the seventh inning down two runs. On a full count, D’Orazio walked to begin the inning. The next three hitters failed to reach base. Yepez flew out; Fitzgerald reached on a fielder’s choice, and Nicole Cancel grounded out to end the game.
The Pride finished the game 2-9 with runners on base compared to Charleston’s 4-12. With the loss, Hofstra is now 20-13 all-time against Charleston and is 4-3 against teams from the CAA South Division this season.
Hofstra returned to the diamond on Friday, May 8, against No.2 seed UNC-Wilmington in the losers’ bracket. First pitch from Elon, North Carolina, was scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
