Cannon’s Late Two-Run Homer Propels Charleston Past Hofstra, 4-2
Dylan Smith
BOX SCORE | PHOTO GALLERY
ELON, N.C. – Halle Cannon’s late two-run blast lifts No. 5 seed Charleston (28-28) past top-seeded Hofstra (29-22), 4-2, in the 2026 CAA Softball Championship at Hunt Softball Park on Thursday.
After Leela Langston tied the game with a sacrifice fly, Austy Miller singled up the middle. The right-footed Cannon took a ball and a strike before drilling a two-run blast the opposite way over the right-field wall, putting the Cougars ahead for good. The senior outfielder belted her second home run of the tournament.
Miller and Bronwyn Conroy each went 2-for-4 at the dish with a run scored. Sierra Paradis also joined the duo with a multi-hit performance. Kendall Thackston tossed two near-flawless innings in relief to pick up her fourth win of the season, surrendering just one hit and one walk in her appearance.
After both teams were held scoreless in the opening frame, the Pride jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the home half of the second inning. Chelsea Villar turned on a 3-2 pitch and sent it over the left-field wall to take a 1-0 edge. After a Ryleigh Smith walk and advancing to second on a sacrifice bunt, Lily Yepez singled up the middle and moved to second on the throw. With two runners in scoring position, Mackenzie Fitzgerald smacked an RBI single into left field to bump Hofstra’s lead to two.
The Pride’s Emma Falen tossed four scoreless innings to open the contest, inducing a flyout to end two of the four frames. The California product allowed just four baserunners over that span. CofC’s starter Ryley Kutter settled in with back-to-back 1-2-3 innings of her own, retiring the side in order in the third and fourth stanzas.
Charleston broke through in the top of the fifth following a leadoff triple from Karlee Hughes. Julia Sitterding put her 1-1 offering on the warning track in left and brought Hughes in from third, slashing the Cougars’ deficit to one, 2-1.
Thackston came on in the sixth and continued Kutter’s scoreless-inning stretch before the game-winning blast from Cannon. The Cougars closed out the contest and advanced to day three of the conference tournament for the first time since 2022.
The Cougars will return to Hunt Softball Park on Friday, May 8, for a 12 p.m. showdown against the winner of UNCW and Campbell. Hofstra will await the winner of tonight’s 6 p.m. contest, involving Stony Brook and a team yet to be determined, when it faces off at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.
Wednesday, May 6
Game 1:
No. 5 Charleston 5, No. 4 Stony Brook 1
Game 2:
No. 3 Campbell 4, No. 6 Elon 3
Game 3:
No. 4 Stony Brook 5, No. 6 Elon 3
Thursday, May 7
Game 4:
No. 5 Charleston 4, No. 1 Hofstra 2
Game 5: No. 2 UNCW vs. No. 3 Campbell - 2:30 p.m.
Game 6: No. 4 Stony Brook vs. Lower Seed of Games 4 & 5 Losers - 5 p.m.
Friday, May 8
Game 7: No. 5 Charleston vs. Winner of Game 5 - 12 p.m.
Game 8: Winner of Game 6 vs. Higher Seed Games 4 & 5 Losers - 2:30 p.m.
Game 9: Winner of Game 8 vs. Loser of Game 7 - 5 p.m.
Saturday, May 9
Game 10: Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 9 - 12 p.m.
Game 11: If Necessary - 2:30 p.m.
Follow #CAASoftball on
Facebook,
Twitter, and
Instagram to get up-to-date information and learn more about CAA member institutions and their softball programs.