The Hofstra University softball team has made it to the 2023 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) championship game. After losing the first game of what turned into a doubleheader to the Towson University Tigers, the Pride took down its archrivals from Suffolk County, the Stony Brook University Seawolves, for the second time in the tournament.
Hofstra will be playing Towson again on Saturday, May 13, at Bill Edwards Stadium for the CAA title. If the Tigers win, they are the 2023 CAA champions. If the Pride wins, a second game will occur right after the game because of double-elimination rules.
Game one of Friday, May 12, scheduled for Hofstra featured the host team playing against fifth-seeded Towson. Despite a strong pitching performance from Julia Apsel, the Pride couldn’t put the game away, as the Tigers took a 2-1 lead late in the game.
“It was a hard-fought game,” said Hofstra head coach Adrienne Clark. “It did not go in our favor, but I thought our team battled, and I thought they fought hard. They continue to focus on themselves, and one little inch here and one little inch there is the beauty of our game. It could have easily gone in the other direction.”
It was an all-out pitcher’s duel in this game, and the only real threat for either team came in the bottom of the second inning. Hofstra had runners on first and second base with two outs, but Maddie Gardner struck out a struggling Kayla Wilson to avoid any damage.
The Pride took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning when senior Aliya Catanzarita hit a nuke out to left field that landed past the bleachers. This was her third home run of the season and her first since May 5.
“That was amazing,” Clark said. “Getting that run on the board definitely added some pressure and allowed us to play a little freely on defense.”
Apsel had another 1-2-3 inning in the fifth inning before it all fell apart for Hofstra in the sixth. Two singles, a wild pitch and a walk loaded the bases with one out for Towson. On a 1-1 pitch, Madyson Peters hit into a fielder’s choice where the Pride got the out at second base, but Cori Jones still scored the tying run. Elizabeth Yoskowitz came in to score as well on an errant throw by Hofstra first baseman Angelina Ioppolo.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, Meghan Giordano was walked to load the bases with two outs. It was down to Ioppolo. She took the first pitch from Gardner and popped it up high in the air where shortstop Mackenzie Lake caught it to send Towson to the championship game.
Gardner got her 16th win of the season after throwing all seven innings. Apsel was handed the loss, her eighth of the season.
In game two, the Pride went up against arch-rivals Stony Brook. For both teams, it was win or go home. And the Pride wanted to win in front of the home crowd.
“The team just did everything that they possibly could to ensure that we got the win,” Clark said. “When you have everyone locked in, like the way that we do, it makes it fun to watch and so much fun to be a part of.”
The Pride went on the offensive immediately. After a walk and single to begin the inning, Giordano came to the plate and ripped a double into right field, bringing in leadoff hitter Kayla Wilson to make the score 1-0. Ioppolo doubled the lead after reaching on a fielder’s choice that drove in Chelsea Manto. Giordano came in to score on a sacrifice fly by Becca Vaillancourt, while Ioppolo scored on a single by red-hot Alanna Morse.
Stony Brook made it a one-run game in the top of the second inning. With two runners on, Alicia Orosco hit a two-run, two-out single down the left field line that scored Brooke Dye and Sofia Chambers to cut the lead in half to 4-2. Orosco advanced to second base on the throw. Alyssa Costello followed that up with a single that brought Orosco in.
Hofstra added back to the lead in the bottom of the second inning. With one out, Giordano hit a sacrifice fly to right field that brought Manto in to make the score 5-3.
The Seawolves tied it in the top of the third inning, but Hofstra took back the lead in the bottom half. Olivia Malinowski grounding into a fielder’s choice and Collins hitting a sacrifice fly that scored two runs gave the Pride an 8-5 lead.
The lead stayed like that until the bottom of the sixth when Ioppolo scored off another clutch hit by Madison McKevitt on a single into right field, making the score 9-5 Hofstra.
Down to their final out, the Seawolves were facing Apsel, who came out of the bullpen to relieve Anna Butler. After striking out Costello looking, Apsel had a 3-2 count against Catherine Anne Kupinski. Kupinski took that 3-2 pitch and blistered a home run out to left field almost in the same spot that Catanzarita hit her home run in game one. The three-run shot put the Seawolves within cheating distance. But Apsel was able to get Ashley Jacobson to line out to first base to knock Stony Brook out of the tournament.
“[Our game plan is] I think, for starters, rest, recover, regroup, fuel our bodies,” Clark said. “And then come out hungry and stay in the attack, just like we did tonight. That’s pretty much the game plan.”
Game one’s first pitch against Towson is at noon. If needed, game two will start at 2:30 p.m. The game(s) will be broadcast on both FloSoftball and WRHU.
Photo courtesy of Alexis Friedman/Hofstra Athletics
