By Gio Annatelli -- STAFF WRITER Even with a late home run by sophomore Brielle Pietrafesa to bring the Pride within one run in the final inning, that wasn’t enough for Hofstra to mount a comeback. Pride softball lost to LIU Brooklyn 3-2 on Sunday down in Fort Myers.
With the loss, the Pride falls to 6-4 and finished the FGCU Invitational with a 3-2 record. The Blackbirds improve to 4-6 with the win and 1-4.
These foes were never originally supposed to face off against one another, as Hofstra was scheduled to take on Southern Illinois. But a few players from Southern Illinois were hospitalized due to illness and the game was forced to be canceled until LIU Brooklyn agreed to take the teams place.
In the circle, Jessica Peslak took the loss for the Pride, falling to 3-3 on the year. She pitched five and two-thirds innings, allowing three runs. For the Blackbirds, Erynn Sobieski pitched a complete game, allowing two runs while fanning four batters. She improves to 2-1 on the year.
The excitement didn’t start until the bottom of the fourth inning, where Peslak pitched her way out of a bases-loaded, no-out jam to keep the game tied.
In the bottom of the fifth, LIU Brookyln struck with a pair of home runs. Kayla Gloady fell behind the count before she bombed one over the left field fence. A couple batters later, Victoria Zamora sent a solo shot to the same part of the field to put the Blackbirds up 2-0.
That wouldn’t be the end of the scoring, as Kylie Mulholland smacked a single in the very next inning to get things rolling. She then reached home plate by Ariana Lopez’s double to left field.
The Pride did not give up, as Michaela Transue singled to right field to get the ball rolling. Two batters later, Pietrafesa took Sobieski deep to left field to bring Hofstra within one before Nikki Michalowski lined out to end the game.
At the time, Ariana Lopez’s RBI double seemed to be an insurance run, but by the end of the game, it became the deciding run.
The Hofstra Pride will return to Florida for a third and final time for the season. They’ll travel to Tallahassee for the Unconquered Invitational. The first game of a doubleheader is Friday at 2:30 p.m., as they take on the University of Alabama at Birmingham, followed by Florida State at 5 p.m.