Pride Wins Super Regional Game 1 In 11 Innings Against #19 USF
Tampa, Fla. - Hofstra junior Olivia Galati and USF Sara Nevins both pitched up to
their reputations as staff aces while senior Michelle Lavagnino delivered the most important hit of
her career, sending a RBI single to right in the top of the 11th that lifted
the Pride to a 2-1 victory over No. 19 USF in Game 1 of the best-of-three Tampa
Super Regional Friday night.
Galati (34-5) won her 32nd
straight start, limiting the Bulls to just four hits while striking out five
against just one walk in Hofstra's longest game of the season and first super
regional contest in program history. Hofstra (42-13) set a school record with
its 21st consecutive win overall is now one win away from the Women's College
World Series.
Hofstra and USF will play Game 2
on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. followed by Game 3, if necessary, at 5 p.m. Both games
will be televised by ESPNU. Live audio through Pride Zone and live stats can be
accessed through GoHofstra.com.
Galati did not allow a hit from
the third inning until the 10th, pitching in high humidity front of a USF
Softball Stadium-record sold-out crowd of 1,561 in the nationally televised
contest. Neither the ranked opponent nor the weather fazed her as Galati threw
135 pitches but had more strikeouts past the fifth inning (three) than before
it (two). Galati has not lost since March 4.
Nevins (29-5), who logged 7 1/3
innings after starting the contest and re-entering after a pitching change,
tossed 134 pitches and held Hofstra to seven hits while striking out nine
against six walks.
The West Babylon, N.Y. native
entered with the Division I lead in ERA at 0.91 and is now one win away from tying
the NCAA Division I single-season record of 33 consecutive victories and saved
her best for last, retiring the last five batters of the contest, including a
1-2-3 final inning against the 3-4-5 USF hitters to secure the wins. The Pride
is now the closest it's ever been to the WCWS since the 2004 squad lost to No.
7 Stanford in the final round of what was then an eight-team regional.
Hofstra received offensive
contributions from the bottom of the order to break the deadlock in the 11th.
Junior D.J. Slugh hit
a leadoff single to center to start the frame. Slugh, who came in as a
pinch-runner for Erin Trippi in
the sixth and stayed in to bat in the designated player spot, registered her
first hit since April 11.
Slugh then moved to second when
the umpires called Nevins for her fifth illegal pitch of the game with nobody
out. Senior Courtney Crews dropped a bunt down the first base
line for a sacrifice, moving Slugh to third with one out before sophomore Tori Rocha walked
to put runners on the corners.
Lavagnino then picked up her
first RBI in 11 games at the most critical juncture of Hofstra's season,
pulling Nevins' pitch to right to score Slugh without a throw. Hofstra
loaded the bases with one out looking for insurance runs but Nevins escaped
further damage with a double-play grounder.
Galati extend her school-record
strikeout total to 1,010. USF didn't even get a base runner past second base
from the fourth inning to the conclusion of the game.
The Bulls almost took advantage
on a break when Janine Richardson struck out to start the ninth but reached on
a passed ball. Galati got two pop outs and forced Laura Fountain to ground out
to second to end the threat and send a Hofstra game to the 10th inning for the first time this season.
USF got the leadoff runner on in
the bottom of the seventh when Kenshyra Jackson was hit by a pitch on a
full-count. Stephanie Juergens pinch ran as the potentially winning run and was
sacrificed to second on a well-placed bunt up the third base line.
Galati forced a fly out to right
and punch hitter Sydney Dinelli came up. Galati left the runner on second,
striking out Dinelli swinging to ensure Hofstra's first NCAA Tournament
extra-inning contest since a 10-6 loss to then No. 6 Arizona in 12 innings in
2010.
Before the bottom of the seventh dramatics, Hofstra generated a
chance in the top of the inning when ninth-hitting senior Michelle Lavagnino
used her speed to beat out an infield single to short. Lavagnino, a slap
hitter, got a good jump out of the box on the grounder, forcing shortstop
Kourtney Salvarola to mishandle the ball. The play was ruled a single and
junior Rachael Senatore moved Lavagnino to second on a grounder
to third.
Nevins intentionally walked
junior Becca Bigler with
first base open. Galati pop up a rise ball foul but USF catcher Laura Fountain
couldn't make the diving catch. With the reprieve, the runners advanced to
second and third on a passed ball on the next pitch.
Galati then hit the ball hard on
the ground but right to Jessica Mouse at third. The ground out kept the runners
on base and Nevins maintained the tie by getting an inning-ending strikeout.
Hofstra stranded 12 base runners total and USF left seven on base.
Hofstra jumped to an early start,
scoring an opening-inning run for the first time four NCAA Tournament games
this year when Ziemba lined a hard-hit RBI single up the middle to score
Bigler.
The Pride generated two hits and five batters reached base safely
against Nevins in the top of the first, a potent start considering the southpaw
entered with a 1.01 ERA and a .183 batting-average against. Senatore appeared
to ground out to begin the game, though the umpires called an illegal pitch on
Nevins to bring the count full.
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Senatore walked on the next pitch
and Bigler was hit by a pitch to put two runners on base. Following a fielder's
choice, Ziemba followed with her second RBI in as many games for the 1-0 edge.
Nevins recovered to leave three Pride players on base by getting a strikeout.
Hofstra's offense continued its
patient at-bats to chase Nevins with none out in the third after Galati reached
on a leadoff single and Ziemba walked. USF inserted right-hander Lindsey
Richardson to get out of the jam and the reliever struck out the first two
batters faced before inducing a fly out.
USF mounted its first sustained
rally in the third when Alexis Nowell and Ashli Goff hit back-to-back leadoff
singles. After a sacrifice bunt put two runners in scoring position, Mouse
brought in pinch-runner Courtney Goff with a perfectly placed bunt on a squeeze
to knot the score at 1.
Richardson kept Hofstra off the
scoreboard, retiring two batters on fly outs sandwiched around hitting freshman Erin Trippi with
a pitch. With two outs and pinch runner Slugh on
base, USF put Nevins back into the game to face the left-handed hitting Pride
sophomore Tori Rocha.
But on the second pitch of the
inning, Nevins was called for her second illegal pitch of the game, moving
Slugh to second and putting Rocha in a 2-0 count. Nevins rebounded to get
the strikeout, sending the game to the bottom of the sixth still tied.
The Bulls made solid contact with the two batters in the sixth,
though Galati capitalized on the stadium's spacious dimensions (220 feet to
center), getting to fly outs to deep left-center before striking out Salvarola
for a 1-2-3 frame, sending it to the top of the seventh deadlocked.