Opening up the season on the road against the No. 4 ranked team in the nation is difficult enough, but having to do so in front of 6,806 screaming fans after having practiced outdoors one time is a task straight out of the Saw horror movies.
Even so, the Hofstra Pride kept it close and even brought the tying run to the plate in the seventh inning with David Leiderman. He was struck out by hard-throwing Brigham Hill and the Aggies held on to win 5-2.
Ryan Hendrix, pre-season All-American, came on in the eighth inning and completed the five-out save, consistently working in the 95-97 MPH range.
“I thought they showed us great respect by bringing in the best closer in the nation in the eighth inning. They definitely feared our lineup,” said Hofstra Head Coach John Russo.
The Pride’s starter, Alec Eisenberg, did a commendable job–throwing four innings and holding a dynamic offense to 2 ER and not walking a batter.
The Aggies got on the board first with a solo home run in the bottom of the first on a solo shot by Boomer White in his first at bat with the club.
In the top of the second, the Pride tied it up on an RBI single by Nick Bottari in his first career collegiate at bat to score Ryan Karl. They took the lead in the following frame on an RBI single by Steven Foster.
That was the last time the Pride would lead. The Aggies responded with single runs in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings.
Freshman southpaw John Rooney made his collegiate debut in the fifth and was greeted with a lead off triple by J.B. Moss off the top of the left field wall. He came around to score on a sac fly by Ryne Birk.
Rooney, from Melrose, NY, had compiled an unbelievable 36-0 record in his high school career at Hoosie Valley. He didn’t allow the raucous crowd to effect him and he completed two innings allowing two ER.
“I feel comfortable on the mound, I don’t care where it is. That is my area of comfort,” said the freshman.
The Pride outhit the Aggies 10-7 and went 5-for-14 with runners in scoring position. It was certainly a strong showing for a northeast team against an SEC powerhouse. Leiderman and SS Brad Witkowski both recorded two hits.
The two teams will be back in action tomorrow afternoon at 2:00 PM for the middle game of the set.
Longwood ’14 grad Chris Weiss wil be on the hill for the Pride as they look to build on tonight’s game.
