Pride have more clout than Crimson
With one out in the bottom of the ninth inning yesterday, Hofstra's Pam Dreslinski blasted a fastball over the left-field fence off Harvard junior Shelly Madick for a solo walkoff home run that stunned third-seeded Harvard, 3-2, on the opening day of the NCAA softball regionals in Hempstead, N.Y.
The win propelled No. 2 seed Hofstra (41-13) into the winners' bracket against No. 1 Baylor (46-13) this morning at 10. The Crimson (31-14) fell to the losers' bracket and will face No. 4 Albany (33-16), an 8-2 loser to Baylor yesterday, at 12:30 today as the three-day, double-elimination tournament continues at Hofstra Softball Stadium. It was the Pride's 16th straight win.
"I knew it was gone when she hit it," said Madick (16-5), who finished with five strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings, and allowed seven hits and three earned runs -- all on solo homers. "I was hoping that it would go foul, but she got all of the pitch."
The game was a compelling pitchers' duel between Madick, the Ivy League pitcher of the year, and Hofstra's Kayleigh Lotti, a sophomore who was the Colonial Athletic Association pitcher of the year this season after having open-heart surgery three years ago. Though she walked eight, Lotti struck out 11 and allowed just two unearned runs to improve her record to 23-4.
Neither pitcher allowed a run until the bottom of the fourth, when Hofstra's Carolann Lubach turned on a 2-2 fastball and hit it over the left-field fence for a 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the seventh, with Harvard one strike from victory, Hofstra's Melissa Hodge smacked another homer to tie the score at 2.
Harvard, which stranded 12, had scored twice in the top of the seventh when Hofstra second baseman Laura Jaxheimer booted a ground ball that scored Stephanie Krysiak and Julia Kidder.
"We were frustrated we weren't moving our runners over more, and we weren't getting the big hit," said Harvard coach Jenny Allard. "Finally in the seventh we got some things together, but it wasn't enough. It was a great game, and exciting for the fans. My hat's off to Hofstra."
NCAA Division 3 -- A season-high seven errors doomed Rhode Island College in a 9-1 loss to Wisconsin-Eau Claire (36-12) in Salem, Va. The Anchorwomen (41-6), who received a homer from Mandy Shurgot, play Plattsburgh State today in an elimination game.
NCAA Division 3 -- Trinity (30-8) was bounced in the New York Regional, losing an 8-1 decision to Ithaca before being eliminated by Cortland, 10-6, in Auburn, N.Y. James Wood drove in three runs for the Bantams in the second game. Cortland also defeated St. John Fisher, 17-3 . . . New England Regional games in Harwich were rained out and will be made up today.
