HEMPSTEAD, NY – Hofstra used more extra-base hits on Sunday to earn the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) baseball series sweep over the North Carolina A&T Aggies with a 10-4 win at University Field.
The Aggies got a home run from graduate first baseman Tatsunori Negishi but dropped to 21-22 overall and 5-13 against CAA competition. Hofstra, who hit nine extra-base hits on Saturday, hit an additional four extra-base hits on Sunday to improve to 17-27 overall and 8-10 in league play. A&T sophomore right-hander Evan Hart (L, 3-1) made his first appearance since March 24 at the College of Charleston. He threw two innings in his return, giving up one hit, surrendering one run, and walking two batters.
Junior RHP Trent Simmons took over in the home third and surrendered a double to Dylan Palmer and an RBI single to Santino Rosso to give the Pride a 2-0 lead. Freshman LHP Stirling Thomas took over Simmons with one out in the third and got Steve Harrington to foul out before putting runners on first and second by hitting Alex McCoy with a 0-1 pitch.
After throwing a wild pitch to put both runners in scoring position, the inning ended when junior catcher Canyon Brown picked off Rosso at third base. Junior RHP Diego Barrett replaced Thomas to start the fourth. But the Pride got five runs in the home fourth, with Luke Masiuk delivering a three-run double and McCoy coming through with a two-run RBI single to give the Pride a 7-0 advantage.
The Aggies started to cut into the Pride's lead in the visitor's fifth. Senior Camden Jackson opened the frame with a single before moving to second with one out on a wild pitch. Junior infielder Enrique Wood popped out for the second out of the inning before freshman Ellis Reid sparked a two-out rally with an RBI double to left field.
Negishi followed with his sixth home of the season, a two-run shot to center field. Negishi did not have a home run last season at Middle Tennessee State; he had only one home run during the 2022 season at Middle Tennessee. Negishi's home run cut A&T's deficit to four runs, but the Pride responded in its half of the fifth with a two-run single from Palmer.
RHP Russell Hunter took over for left-handed starter Tanner Sanderoff (W, 2-0) to start the A&T sixth. Hunter retired the Aggies in order before the Pride added a run in its sixth inning to take a 10-3 lead. Hunter pitched his way around a Wood single in the seventh, but the Aggies capitalized against Hunter in the eighth.
Negishi led off the frame with a single before advancing to second with one out on a wild pitch. With two outs in the inning, senior outfielder TJ Ash singled up the middle to score Negishi, cutting the Pride's lead to 10-4. Hofstra RHP Danny Kelleher faced the Aggies in the ninth, striking out two batters and getting Wood to pop out to end the inning.
Negishi's two RBIs led the Aggies. Matt Pelcher went 3-for-3 for the Pride with an RBI and two runs scored. On Wednesday, A&T will travel to Blacksburg, Va., to face nationally-ranked Virginia Tech from Atlantic Union Bank Park at 7 p.m.
