Starter David D’Errico silenced James Madison for 6 2/3 innings and JMU’s rally attempt from a 4-0 deficit came up short as Hofstra earned a 4-3 win in the opener of a Colonial Athletic Association baseball series on Friday afternoon at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park.
Hofstra picked up its first win of the season to improve to 1-8 overall and 1-0 in the CAA. JMU dropped consecutive games for the first time this season, falling to 11-3 overall and 3-1 in the league.
D’Errico improved to 1-2 after holding JMU scoreless for the first six innings and exiting after allowing a sacrifice fly for the second out in the seventh. He allowed five hits and struck out three. Joe Burg worked the final 2 1/3 innings, allowing two runs while earning his first save.
First baseman Joe Perez was 2-for-3 with a walk and a pair of runs scored for the Pride. Designated hitter Dylan Nasiatka had a solo home run in the fourth while catcher Matt Reistetter added a key two-run single in the seventh. Hofstra posted its four runs in the second, fourth and seventh innings on just three hits and finished with six.
Junior Evan Scott (Haymarket, Va./Battlefield) suffered the loss for JMU, falling to 2-1 after allowing four runs on three hits in 6 1/3 innings.
Junior catcher Jake Lowery (Midlothian, Va./Cosby) was 2-for-4 with a two-run home run for the Dukes.
Hofstra got on the board first in the second inning in quick fashion as Perez led off with a double to the warning track in right center. A groundout to second moved him one base and a groundout to shortstop by right fielder T.J. Thomas drove in the run.
The Pride added a run in the fourth as Nasiatka lifted a high fly that bounced off the top of the 16-foot wall in right and over the fence.
Hofstra led off the seventh with a pair of five-pitch walks. After a sacrifice bunt by Thomas, Reistetter singled up the middle to drive in two runs for a 4-0 Pride advantage.
JMU got one back in the seventh as Lowery led off with a single, moved to second on a wild pitch and reached third on a single by senior shortstop David Herbek (Haymarket, Va./Battlefield). Sophomore first baseman Matt Tenaglia (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East) lifted his fourth sacrifice fly in 14 games to score Lowery.
The Pride started a two-out rally in the eighth with a single by shortstop Matt Ford followed by a walk by Nasiatka. Perez then singled to left but Ford was thrown out at the plate to end the inning.
The Dukes kept the rally going in the eighth as a two-out single by redshirt senior center fielder Alex Foltz (Mathias, W.Va./East Hardy) was followed by a two-run homer to right by Lowery, his team-leading eighth of the season.
The first two batters in the ninth went down via strikeout. Freshman third baseman Conner Brown (Richmond, Va./Godwin) reached on a walk, but a fielder’s choice groundout by right fielder Ian Haynes (Danville, Va./Tunstall) ended the game.
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