By Stacy Troiano
Another weekend, another set of battles atop the CAA for head coach Simon Riddiough and the Pride. Hofstra came into the weekend ranked second in the conference behind James Madison, and after losing to the Dukes 2-0 on Friday, the Pride bounced back from a Friday night loss for the third time to win on Sunday. They defeated perennial CAA powerhouse Virginia Commonwealth 2-0 in possibly the Pride’s most complete and dominant performance of the season.
“I asked them before the game to control tempo, score off set pieces and to keep a clean sheet, and they did all of the above basically,” Riddiough said. “We dominated from start to finish and didn’t allow VCU any quality chances. We got two goals out of set pieces, so everything I asked of them they did, and they did it very well.”
The win on Sunday boosted the Pride record to 12-3 on the season and 6-2 in the CAA. VCU dropped to 8-7-1 overall and 5-3 in the conference.
After the disappointing loss on Friday night amid the downpour rain, Hofstra appeared ready from the start on Sunday. Just over 20 minutes into the game, the Pride extended its newly-set school record when freshman midfielder Tiffany Yovino became the 15th different goal-scorer of the season for the Pride.
Sophomore back Jess Crankshaw served a corner kick into the box where it deflected off a defender and was batted around in front of the net. Yovino jumped on the loose ball and swiftly put a shot past VCU goalie Emily Niman and into the right side of the net for her first collegiate goal.
Minutes later, Pride goalie Krystal Robens stifled VCU’s best scoring chance of the day. Hofstra turned the ball over deep in its own end, and Rams’ forward June Hartman sent a ball to Amanda Adams 12 yards in front of the goal. Adams fired a one-timer low, but Robens made a sliding save. The ensuing rebound shot straight into the air, and Robens recovered to catch the ball on a hop and keep the 1-0 lead in tact.
The Pride had a 6-2 shot advantage in the first half, and the relentless attack continued in the second. Chances from Edel Malone on a flying header off a corner kick and Brooke DeRosa on a cracker from the left side of the box were barely off the mark.
The CAA points leader wouldn’t be denied, though, as DeRosa tallied her ninth goal of the season with just over 22 minutes left to play. Senior defender Sue Weber took a free kick from just past midfield and served a perfect ball into the penalty area, where DeRosa crashed in and flicked the ball out of the air past a diving Niman to put the Pride comfortably ahead 2-0.
The stellar Pride defense took over from there, allowing only one shot in the final 20 minutes of play. Hofstra held a 13-5 edge in shots and had 10 corner kicks while VCU had none on the day. Robens made three saves in her sixth shutout of the season.
Sunday’s impressive outing comes after a disappointing loss to James Madison on Friday, a game in which the Pride took 20 shots but couldn’t find the net. Riddiough remained upbeat after the loss, and said the game on Sunday was a testament to his team’s determination.
“This team has the confidence that we are good and we are competitive,” Riddiough said. “After losing to James Madison in a game that I thought we deserved to win, or definitely didn’t deserve to lose, it was just a matter of making sure we were believing that still. Coming up against VCU we stepped it up and got the result we wanted.”
Riddiough also added that the success and the confidence of the team can’t be attributed to a single player; something he believes is a key to this team’s accomplishments.
“I can’t isolate different players because they’ve all stepped up at different times,” Riddiough said. “It’s a team effort. People come off the bench and do a good job, and people start and do a good job, so I’m pretty happy with everybody at the moment.”
Hofstra’s win on Sunday coupled with Northeastern’s upset of James Madison keeps the Pride in the middle of a three-team race for the regular season title with the Dukes and William and Mary who are both 6-1-1 in the conference.
No matter what happens in the regular season, Riddiough said when the conference playoffs come around, the Pride will be ready to avenge losses to both James Madison and William and Mary.
“I think the team knows we can play with those teams,” Riddiough said. “It’s just a matter of maintaining the confidence and belief, and if we can get that, I know we won’t have an issue beating those teams.”
DeRosa’s all-star season continued with a goal against VCU. She will look to lead the Pride as the regular season winds down. (Sean M. Gates)