The No. 21 Hofstra University men’s soccer team tied 1-1 with No. 23 North Carolina State University on Tuesday, Oct. 15. The Pride advanced to 9-3-2 overall.
NC State took the lead in the 24th minute as forward Hakim Karamoko maneuvered the ball into the center just outside the penalty area before curling it into the left corner of the net, scoring his fourth goal of the season.
With halftime nearing, the Pride searched for an equalizer, finding it in the 40th minute. Hofstra midfielder Teddy Baker sent a corner kick into the box, straight towards Jacob Woznicki for a header into the far corner. Woznicki, nicknamed “The Beast,” scored his seventh goal of the season and first in three games. Baker recorded his first assist of the season to hit seven points total.
Both teams hunkered down in the second half as neither side conceded from there on out. Pride goalkeeper Filippo Dadone made a career-high of seven saves. His first save stopped midfielder Taig Healy from distance nearly 13 minutes in. He made another stop in the 56th minute to block Aidan Payne’s shot right in front of the goal. Dadone had the last touch of the night as he punched the ball clear as time expired.
The Wolfpack didn’t score a second goal despite outranking their opponents 18-7 in total shots and 8-5 in shots-on-goal.
Both teams collected a total of five yellow cards, one of which was assessed to Hofstra head coach Richard Nuttall for dissent after a foul was called on Pride midfielder Aleksei Armas. Nuttall, who has now been booked in back-to-back games, has 11 yellow cards in his 36 years with the program. Four of the yellow cards have come from this season alone.
Hofstra forward Laurie Goddard missed a second consecutive match with an injury. Goddard previously started the first 12 matches for the Pride and is second in the team in scoring. Slovenian transfer Jon Jelercic received his second start of the season while defender Gabriel Pacheco only played the final two minutes of the match because of his bandaged right hand.
Lennon Gill, another Hofstra forward, was subbed off in the 73rd minute with an apparent knee injury. Gill fell on his knee after colliding shoulder-to-shoulder with an opposing player and was being attended to on the touchline for some time. Earlier this year, Gill fully recovered from a 22-month-long ACL injury in one of his knees which required two surgeries. His status remains unclear.
The visiting Pride held on, securing their second draw of the season and their first since the season opener against Fordham University on Aug. 22. Hofstra is 1-1-1 against ranked opponents, matching their record from last season, while their away record advanced to 3-3-1.
The Pride’s next match is on the road against the University of South Florida on Tuesday, Oct. 22. Kickoff in Tampa is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Royce Dickson-Child
