St. John's University Athletics
St. John's University
Hofstra
St. John's Loses Two Road Games At Hofstra
4/19/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 19, 2006
LONG ISLAND, N.Y. -
The St. John's softball team lost a pair of games to Hofstra in non-conference action on Wednesday evening. Despite holding a 6-5 lead in the third inning, the Red Storm fell in game one by a final score of 14-6. Game two saw St. John's post a late seventh inning rally, only to have the game called due to darkness on the field. In accordance with NCAA rules, the game reverts back to the last full inning played, giving the Red Storm a 5-1 loss.
Game One: St. John's leadoff hitter, Tami Hill (San Diego, Calif.) set the tone for game one with a single to left-center field. There were runners on first and second after Danielle Estrada (Moreno Valley, Calif.) was hit by the first pitch she saw, putting the Red Storm in scoring position early. Hill scored the first run of the game on a Hofstra error at first base. Catcher Lauren Lupinetti's (Long Beach, Calif.) double to deep center field drove in Estrada and Megan Oliver (Endicott, N.Y.), putting St. John's up 3-0.
The Hofstra Pride answered back in the bottom of the first as Ashley Lane's double to center field drove in two runs. Jessica Marical's (Stanton, Calif.) diving catch in right field kept Hofstra from taking an early lead, but the Pride was able to tie up the score 3-3.
Hill continued to dominate at the plate, crushing the ball to far center field. The double put St. John's up 4-3 as Marical scored from second base.
The back-and-forth battle between the two teams continued as Hofstra went up 5-4 in the bottom of the second. Jo Sherlock's (San Diego, Calif.) over-the-fence home run to center field made the score 6-5 in the top of the third. Sherlock has five career home runs on Hofstra's home field.
Carolann Lubach hit her first career home run in the bottom of the third. The two-run shot gave Hofstra a 7-6 edge. The Pride switched pitchers in the top of the fourth as Courtney Oliver relieved starter Melissa Hodge. Hofstra added two more runs in the bottom of the inning on two Red Storm errors.
Freshman Jessica Foley (Orange County, Calif.) struggled over six innings, giving up four hits in a game-changing fifth. Lane's two run homer put Hofstra up by five and Oliver's RBI single made the score 12-6. Hodge started the sixth inning off with solo home run to left field and Tara Ulrich's RBI single ended the game, 14-6.
Game Two: Hofstra took an early first inning lead on two consecutive Red Storm errors. St. John's starting pitcher Lisa Geer (Anaheim, Calif.) walked the first two batters she faced in the second and hit the third. Hofstra's Lane stayed hot at the plate and her double to left center drove in another two runs as the Pride went up 4-0.
The Red Storm threatened in the third after Estrada's single to shallow right field loaded the bases with one out. Hill, Estrada and Oliver were all stranded on base as the team could not find a way to drive a runner in.
Estrada started off the sixth inning with a single up the middle. She had all three of St. John's hits up until Sherlock's shot up the middle two batters later. An error by Hofstra's short stop loaded the bases as Roxann Struble (Chino, Calif.) came to the plate. Struble was walked, forcing in St. John's first run of the game but the Red Storm went on to leave another three on base.
St. John's would not go down without a fight and senior Blair Belloni (Newport, Ore.) started the seventh inning with a hard single to left field. Hill followed up with a single to center field to officially start the rally cries. Estrada's grounder loaded the bases with no outs on the board. Belloni crossed the plate on a fielder's choice, making the score 5-2. Sherlock's RBI single put the tying runs on base as Loren Anguiano (Mesa, Ariz.) came up to bat. Anguiano doubled to the center field fence, driving in both Sherlock and Lupinetti and tying the score 5-5.
Unfortunately, the late comeback was not able to be completed due to darkness on the field. In accordance with NCAA rules, the game reverts back to the last full inning played. Hofstra officially won the second game of the double header, 5-1.
The Red Storm hits the road this weekend, April 22-23, for more BIG EAST action. St. John's will face Providence on Saturday at 2 p.m. before heading to Connecticut on Sunday for a 12 p.m. match-up. Both games are doubleheaders.
- Red Storm -
