Towson's walk-off grand slam spoils Hofstra's Saturday

Hofstra baseball fell victim to Towson University’s late inning heroics in a 5-3 loss Saturday afternoon at Schuerholz Park.

The game came down to the final out with Hofstra leading 3-1 in the bottom of the ninth. Richie Palacios stepped up to the plate with the bases loaded and delivered a two-out walk-off grand slam.

The Pride slipped to 12-7 on the season while the Tigers improved to 5-19. Both teams are now 2-3 in Colonial Athletic Association play with the series even at 1-1. 

Matt Weissheier made his sixth start of the season opposing David Marriggi for Towson. 

The game began with a leadoff walk to Steven Foster but the Pride were unable to muster any runs. Towson went down in order in the bottom half of the first. 

The Tigers loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the second but Weissheier made it out of the inning unscathed. 

Hofstra broke a scoreless game in the top of the fourth inning when Parker Quinn singled in Vinnie Costello from third. Costello doubled with two outs and and stole third before heading home. 

In the fifth, slugger Vito Friscia hammered his fourth home run of the season to give Hofstra a 2-0 lead. Towson picked up three hits in the bottom half of the inning but was unable to produce a run.

Weissheier retired the side in order in his sixth and final scoreless inning for the Pride before being relieved by Brad Camarda and Chris Weiss. 

In the eighth, Hofstra loaded the bases on a single and two walks. Daniel Page drew a six pitch walk to force in the third run of the day for the Pride. 

Towson had four total hits heading into the ninth inning trailing by three runs. Weiss took the ball in the seventh and sailed into the ninth. 

The Tigers began the ninth with a walk and a single before back-to-back strikeouts from Weiss. Dirk Masters singled home Towson’s first run of the game and left runners on the corner. An ensuing walk left the bases loaded for Richie Palacios, the Tigers’ best bat. 

Palacios sent a 1-2 pitch over the right field wall to send Towson home with a win. 

Towson finished the ninth inning with five runs on three hits and two walks. 

Rob Weissheier led the charge for Hofstra with three hits while Quinn and Friscia both added a pair.