By Bob Bonett
It is remarkable how much luck can play a part in Division I women’s soccer. Just ask Coach Simon Riddiough.
Sadly, he will have to give you the negative perspective.
Decimated by injuries, stuck in a conference with a number of powerhouses, and a questionable call all inevitably led to what will be a long winter for the Hofstra soccer girls. Following a tie Thursday night against Northeastern and a James Madison victory Friday night over Virginia Commonwealth, the defending Colonial Athletic Association playoff champions found out that they would be unable to defend their title.
Ups and downs, encouragement and disappointment, the season yielded it all for the girls.
First, the girls swept their first CAA weekend series in a pair of defensive showcases.
Next came the uncharacteristic two-game sweep of Hofstra suffered on the road that exploited Hofstra’s bandaged program.
The remainder of the season proved to just repeat the aforementioned trend: losses to conference powers, victories over weak divisional opponents, and suspect play in essential games.
All that the Pride were able to pull from what looked like at the end of 2005 as the team to beat ended up being a mediocre .500 record, good for only seventh place in a conference that belonged to them year ago.
Sure, the bad luck of injuries played a part in it. A team returning only two starters from the previous season is sure to face their share of perils. Losing one of the greatest goalies in Pride history (Becky Wachsberger) did not enhance to situation. And to top it all off, a scoring power in Marie Curtin hobbled by injury in the season’s stretch run served as another setback.
Yet, disappointingly, no matter how you shake it, until the fall of 2007, the girls will have to deal with no playoff soccer. They will have to only look back with unfulfilled expectations, and second-guessing.
Despite all of this though, the way in which the season ended completely summed up the team’s season as a whole; “a bad call”, as defensive superstar Sue Weber called it. A penalty kick for Northeastern down 1-0 to tie the game at one, sending it to overtime, and inevitably, leading themselves to a “completely unexpected” (as Northeastern coach Ed Matz called it) playoff berth, in turn, leading the Pride to this soccer-less November.
Yet, the girls, the fans, the coaches, nobody can blame a season on one whistle of the referee. Coach Ridiough knows this, Weber knows this, Curtin knows this, and even freshman goaltender Krysten Farriella knows this.
Farriella felt that Thursday’s match up meant victory for the Pride “without a doubt.”
And regardless of the disappointment of 2006, in true determined Hofstra fashion, Weber, preseason All-American, does not even waver her expectations.
“We’ve got good girls coming in, injured players coming back, we’re going to be awesome. We should win the CAA, and move deep into the NCAA tournament.”
Maybe these predictions are not that absurd though for the Pride. 2005 CAA Rookie of the Year Edel Malone will be stepping back onto the field. Jess Crankshaw, a defensive superstar, will be healed from her injury. Kristine Suapengco will be playing without a distracting knee brace, and the freshman goal-scoring duo of Erika Fuertes and Jill Lipari will have another year under the belt.
Who knows, maybe 2007 will be a memorable one for Hofstra soccer.
All of this hinges on one idea though, one uncontrollable aspect of college athletics.
Hopefully, in 2007, luck and destiny will take the side of the Pride.
