The Hofstra University women’s lacrosse team earned its first win of the 2026 season on Wednesday afternoon, defeating Manhattan University 19-5 at Captains Field. With the win, the Pride improved to 4-0 all-time against Manhattan and evened their record at 1-1 on the season, while the Jaspers fell to 0-2.
Nikki Mennella led the way with six goals and two assists, and Kayleigh Bender added four goals to propel Hofstra to their sixth consecutive home opener win.
Mennella set the tone early, scoring just 42 seconds into the match before adding another goal 46 seconds later to give Hofstra a quick 2-0 advantage. The Pride stretched the lead to 5-0 midway through the first quarter behind goals from Mennella, Bender and Natalie DeMeo.
A goal from Manhattan’s Julia Kerr did not slow down the Pride. Hofstra scored the next 11 goals, turning a 5-1 first-quarter lead into a convincing 16-1 third-quarter advantage.
Goals from Maggie Turco, Charli Joyce and Kristen Redding helped extend the lead in the fourth quarter, making it clear that the Pride would run away with the win.
“It’s really exciting to get the first win under our belts,” said Hofstra head coach Shannon Smith. “I thought we played super hard and played team lacrosse. It was nice to see that against a good Manhattan team, and I’m just proud of how hard [the Hofstra players] worked for one another.”
The Pride outshot the Jaspers 38-13 and won 17 of 26 draws, maintaining possession for most of the game.
“It was a huge focus for us,” Smith said. “We didn’t do too well in the draw circle in our last game, so we watched a lot of film and really worked on it in practice. I thought we improved, and that’s such an important part of the game. We’ll continue to build on that as the season progresses.”
Mennella’s performance moved her into 10th place on the Hofstra career goals list, 10th place on the career assists list, and ninth place on the career points list with 123, 57 and 180, respectively.
“[Mennella’s milestone performance] was huge,” Smith said. “[Mennella] played with a lot of passion and really inspired the group. She’s fiery and aggressive, and we’re going to continue to need that from her moving forward.”
On the defensive end, the Pride’s goalkeeper, Luchianna Cardello, recorded six saves, while defender Evin Terzioglu picked up four ground balls and caused three turnovers, helping hold Manhattan to just five goals in the matchup.
“I thought defensively we were sliding well, communicating and coming up with key stops,” Smith said. “It was also great to get everyone playing time because they all work hard in practice, and it was nice to see that pay off.”
The Pride’s next matchup was with Quinnipiac University; the Valentine’s Day bout was set for noon.
