HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – The Towson University baseball team (7-27, 3-6 CAA) led after five-and-a-half innings at Hofstra (7-24, 2-7 CAA), but late rallies by the Pride gave the game to the home team 12-6.
 
Towson led 5-2 after scoring three runs in the top of the fifth to lead at the midway point in the game.  Hofstra got five runs in each the sixth and seventh innings for the win. 

Despite the defeat, Towson leaves Long Island with its first Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) series victory of the year, having won on Friday and Saturday.
 
Key Stats:

• Towson out-hit Hofstra 15-12 in the game with six Tigers putting together multi-hit performances.
• Two Tigers finished 3-for-5: Zach Piazza earned a pair of doubles with two RBI and a run while Isaiah Winikur was a home run shy of the cycle, also notching a run and an RBI.  Noah Cabrera, Javon Fields, Tom Flacco and Dirk Masters all had two hits apiece.
• On the pitching end, Oluwasayo Kintunde went 1.2 innings in his start with two runs and four strikeouts, relieved by Jake Pecilunas, who retired 11 in a row for 3.2 innings thrown despite two runs and three strikeouts.  The loss went to Joe Enea (0-2), who had two runs charged in the sixth.
• For Hofstra, Austin Pollack hit a three-run home run to finish 1-for-4 with four RBI.  The win went to reliever Andrew Mundy (1-2), who pitched four innings with three runs, while Daniel Page had a three-inning save.

How it Happened:

• Towson got on the scoreboard in the opening inning.  Following a Dirk Masters walk, Zach Piazza worked the count and crushed a 1-2 fastball off the high center field fence for a double, bringing Masters to the plate for a 1-0 Tigers lead.
• Next inning, Isaiah Winikur hit a laser off the center field wall, speeding around the bases for a triple.  Trent Gast-Woodard followed with a sacrifice fly to bring in Winikur to push Towson up 2-0.
• Hofstra got its first runs in the bottom of the second, starting by loading the bases with one out.  Tyler White lined a single to right to bring in a runner.  Two batters later, a bases loaded walk to Vito Friscia tied the game at 2-2.  Jake Pecilunas entered to pitch and retired 11 batters in a row into the sixth.
• The Black & Gold rallied in the top of the fifth.  Javon Fields started by launching a ball off the center field fence for a triple, scoring as the centerfielder bobbled the ball.  The inning continued as Masters singled, then Piazza hit a high-bouncing ball to left for a double to score Masters.  Piazza advanced to third then scored on a Noah Cabrera ground out to make the score 5-2.
• The bottom of the sixth saw the Pride rally for the lead.  Hofstra used four hits, including a three-run home run by Austin Pollack, and a pair of walks, to plate five and go ahead 7-5.
• Towson responded right away, getting first and second with one out.  Winikur hit a low line drive down the left field line for a double to score Nick Brown to cut the deficit to one.
• The home team had another five-run inning in the bottom of the seventh, including four more hits, to go up 12-6.
• The Tigers attempted to rally in the top of the ninth, getting runners on second and third with one out, but came up short as Hofstra won 12-6.

Inside the Numbers:

• Today's defeat snapped a three-game winning streak for Towson.
• 15 hits ties the most for Towson in a single game this season, also having 15 hits vs. Elon on April 6th.
• Noah Cabrera has reached base safely in his last eight games while Javon Fields has a streak of seven in a row.
• Fields also earned his 12^th multi-hit game this season while Zach Piazza has hit ninth multi-hit game and his fifth multi-RBI performance.

Up Next:
Towson has a pair of mid-week matchups in non-conference play coming up, beginning with a visit to Catonsville on Tuesday to battle UMBC at 6 p.m.
 
- TowsonTigers.com –