Nikki Mennella had a career day, willing the Hofstra University women’s lacrosse team to a thrilling 15-14 win over Monmouth University on Saturday, April 19.
Mennella went off for a career-high 11 points on eight goals and three assists, lifting the Pride to victory after trailing 5-1 in the first quarter. Luchianna Cardello continued her stretch of good play with 12 saves, the fourth straight game of at least 10 saves for the junior goalkeeper.
With the performance, Mennella moved into 12th in program history for career points with 156, 11th in career goals with 105, tied for second for assists in a single season with 36, second for points in a season with 96 and second for goals in a single season with 60.
The Pride needed a win to keep their Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Championship hopes alive, but they got out to a slow start as the Hawks scored five of the first six goals of the game within the first 11 minutes of the game.
Hofstra head coach Shannon Smith called a timeout to settle down her team who had difficulty maintaining a Monmouth offense that came out firing, looking for their first win in CAA play. The move paid off as the Pride closed the first quarter on a 3-0 run, fueled by two goals and an assist from Mennella.
Danielle McNeely ended the Pride’s run with a goal three minutes into the second to regain a two-goal lead, but Megan Flannery responded with her second goal of the day before Mennella completed her 11th hat trick of the season to tie the game at 6-6.
After Kate Carolonza retook the lead for Monmouth, the Pride closed out the first half with goals from Kayleigh Bender and Julia Harris to going into halftime with an 8-7 lead.
The excitement continued as both sides went on multiple runs, trading the lead four times in the second half.
Monmouth tied the game less than a minute into the third quarter, taking the lead a minute later. Harris responded a minute later and Mennella followed up with a goal on the next possession to put the Pride up 11-10. Flannery gave the Pride their biggest lead of the day with her third goal just a minute later.
The Hawks managed to stay in the game by dominating in the draw circle, winning 22 of 32 draw controls as the Pride sent six different players into the circle trying to find an answer.
The extra possessions allowed Monmouth to tie the game yet again with two goals in less than a minute.
After Mennella netted two more goals to put Hofstra up 13-11 with eight and a half minutes to play in the fourth, Monmouth rattled off three straight goals in three minutes.
With the game on the line, Mennella saved her best for last, tying the game with less than four minutes left, then taking the lead a minute later to win the game for the Pride.
The win improved Hofstra to a 9-6 record overall and 4-3 in CAA play while the Hawks fell to 3-12 on the year and 0-7 in conference.
Despite the win, the Pride were eliminated from playoff contention as Elon University defeated Towson University, guaranteeing the final spot in the CAA tournament, holding the tiebreaker over the Pride.
Hofstra will close out their season at home on Saturday, April 26, when they host Long Island rival Stony Brook University. The Pride hopes to end the season on a high note and hand the Seawolves their first loss in the CAA since joining the conference in 2023. The first draw from James M. Shuart Stadium is scheduled for 7 p.m.
