Hempstead, N.Y. – The Elon University baseball team swept a doubleheader with Hofstra Friday, setting itself up for a wild final day of the regular season. The Phoenix won the opener 5-2 and recorded a 7-5 victory in game two.
 
With the wins, Elon improves to 32-20 overall and 19-9 in CAA play. Hofstra falls to 26-26 overall and 13-15 in the CAA.
 
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP IMPLICATIONS

• Elon will head to the final day of the regular season as one of three teams with a chance to earn the CAA regular season championship.
• UNCW is 18-8 and sits atop the CAA standings with a .692 win percentage. The Seahawks will host a doubleheader with William & Mary Saturday. They would win the regular season crown with a sweep.
• Northeastern follows at 20-9 and a .690 win percentage. With a win over Charleston and one UNCW loss, the Huskies would earn the CAA regular season championship.
• Elon is 19-9 in conference and boasts a .679 win percentage. The Phoenix needs a win and losses by both UNCW and Northeastern to earn the conference championship.
• Those three teams will be the top three seeds (in some order) for the CAA Tournament May 24-28 at The Ballpark at Patriots Point in Mt. Pleasant, S.C.

 
GAME ONE
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Elon got on the board first following a second-inning Justin Cassella double. He moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on Tanner Holliman's sacrifice bunt to put the Phoenix ahead 1-0.
• Elon put up three runs in the fourth as Cole Reynolds walked and scored on Cassella's ensuing home run, his 15^th of the season. Tanner Holliman followed with a one out single, moved to second on a Kenny Mallory Jr. sacrifice bunt and then scored on Connor Coolahan's RBI single.
• Hofstra got a solo homer in the fifth to close the gap but Elon extended it back in the seventh. After Mallory Jr. doubled, Coolahan moved him to third with a sac bunt. James Broderick hit a sac fly to the wall in left field to drive in Mallory Jr. for the 5-1 lead.
• Hofstra opened the bottom of the eighth inning with a solo homer to make it 5-2, but Ben Simon came on in relief and closed the door on any thoughts of a rally.
• Simon continued to work in the ninth, earning the two-inning save.

 
STATS AND NOTES

• Shea Sprague improved to 7-2 on the season and lowered his ERA to 2.80. He want 7.0 innings, scattering nine hits and allowed two earned runs (a pair of solo home runs). He walked none and struck out two batters.
• Cassella was the lone Elon player with multiple hits, recording a double and the fourth inning two-run homer. He scored a pair of runs as well.
• Parker Haskin posted his first career triple but was stranded there in the third inning.
• Mallory Jr. had the only other Elon extra base hit, doubling in the seventh and eventually coming around to score.
• Cole Reynolds walked twice in the contest.
• Ben Simon recorded his seventh save of the season, giving up just one hit and a walk, striking out three over two innings.
• Hofstra entered the contest having won six of its last seven games, scoring at least seven runs in all seven of those contests. It is the first time in the last 11 games that the Pride was held to fewer than three runs.

 
GAME TWO
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Elon got things going in the top of the second as Ryan Sprock and Tanner Holliman homered on back-to-back pitches to give the Phoenix a 2-0 lead.
• The Elon bats stayed hot in the third. Charlie Granatell doubled down the left field line with two outs and Cole Reynolds walked. Justin Cassella then homered to right center, his second of the day, to put the Phoenix ahead 5-0.
• Justin Mitrovich was perfect through the first three innings until giving up a leadoff single to start the bottom of the fourth. He was able to get out of the jam though.
• Elon added to the lead in the sixth. Reynolds opened with a double to center field and moved to third on Cassella's infield single. He then raced home as Hofstra turned a double play to make the score 6-0.
• Hofstra used a walk and two singles in the fifth to plate a pair of runs and make the score 6-2. The Pride rallied again in the sixth with two more runs to make it 6-4.
• Elon answered with a run in the top of the seventh as Reynolds led off with a double. Sprock recorded his third hit of the game, an RBI double, that scored Reynolds for the 7-4 advantage.
• Hofstra scored another run in the bottom of the seventh, its third consecutive inning to add to its scoring tally, making it 7-5.
• Liam Dabagian got out of trouble in both the eighth and ninth innings to pick up the save. He wriggled out of a two-on, one-out jam in the eighth and induced a game-ending double play in the ninth.

 
STATS AND NOTES

• Justin Mitrovich picked up the sixth win of his freshman campaign, allowing two earned runs over 5.0 innings, striking out five.
• Liam Dabagian pitched the final three innings, giving up two hits and two walks, along with one unearned run. He picked up his second save of the year.
• Ryan Sprock went 3-for-5, coming up just a triple shy of the cycle.
• Justin Cassella homered and drove in three runs, his fifth consecutive multi-RBI game. He has homered in four of those five contests, batting .522 with 13 RBI during the stretch.
• Cole Reynolds had two doubles and scored three runs in a 2-for-4 contest.
• Charlie Granatell added a double as well.

 
UP NEXT

• Elon concludes the regular season Saturday by playing at Hofstra at noon.