By Kirsten McKenna
Hofstra suffered a devastating conference loss to Northeastern on Sun., Oct. 21, as the Huskies conquered the Pride with a blistering score of 7-1. Other than the final score, the statistics were not indicative of any kind of blow out, as Northeastern slightly outnumbered Hofstra in the number of shots taken in both periods (13-10 total) and tied the Pride in total penalty corners (5-5).
Excitement surrounded Sunday’s game on Senior Day, as the team had to beat Northeastern in order to secure their most hopeful chance at a playoff berth. After losing such a crucial game with such a shocking deficit, senior captain Pemba Ramdoo was left wondering, “We’re better than this…what went wrong?”
The team had an 11-day lay-off prior the significant match versus Northeastern. Head Coach Kathy De Angelis utilized the time to prepare the team on all accounts. She said, “If you don’t play for that long of a period of time, it can be a disadvantage: the lay- off helped us to recover with injuries.”
Though the team had time to rest and recover during their bye week, the girls were “unable to play a full game,” according to De Angelis.
The Pride remained strong in the first half, leaving for halftime with a score of 2-1. The Huskies were the first to strike as Suzanne Hazelzet assisted teammate Meg Sweeney by shooting a penalty corner, allowing Sweeney to set up and tip the ball past goalkeeper Nadine Surak.
Ramdoo and Brit Blankmeyer charged down the field on Hofstra’s only scoring offensive drive at 18:21. Blankmeyer made a crisp pass to Ramdoo, who quickly drilled the ball into the top of the cage above the head of Northeastern goaltender Liz Centofanti, who allowed no more goals, and made three saves before exiting the game at 66:03 when she was relieved by Colleen Duffy.
Northeastern uncovered a secret weapon in Hazelzet, as she recorded her first career hat trick, scoring one goal right before the half as she converted a penalty stroke against Surak, who said, “Hazelet was a very dangerous, focused, and poised player in the circle.”
Despite Hazelzet’s offensive tenacity, the boo birds began to call from the audience as the questionable penalty stroke call resulted in a goal for Northeastern. Ramdoo, who was involved in a questionable possession call said, “The officiating was incompetent at best. We’ve been dealing with it all season…at times it pierces your spirit, but you play on.”
According to De Angelis, the officiating did not contribute to the loss, but did not benefit the Pride either. She said, “The team was sensitive to the some of the calls, it didn’t work in our favor when we were looking for a little bit of luck.”
Hazelzet, who was named the CAA Player of the Week, returned from halftime and scored two consecutive goals within the first ten minutes of the second half. Ramdoo said, “Her [Hazelzet’s] second goal was a brilliant finish after doing all the work to get into the circle. The other two goals were gifted penalty corners. Three shots and three goals makes her efficient.”
Surak and the Hofstra defense would remain victim of the Northeastern offense, who according to De Angelis maintained a perfect execution on every attack.
De Angelis focused on the importance of the patience and discipline of the defense. She said, “If you lose discipline and patience for a second when a team has the astounding execution capabilities of Northeastern, it is difficult to come back strong.”
Both Ramdoo and Surak agree that their team had difficulty finishing, executing, and connecting within the circle.
Surak, who admits feeling frustrated after Sunday’s loss, allowed Meg Sweeney of Northeastern to score her second goal before the goaltender left the game at 49:51. Krisha Giammarco came into the cage to try and stop the Huskies offense but Harriet Hoyer and Ashley Bascetta scored within the last five minutes of the match.
As the game was fairly statistically balanced, Coach De Angelis attributed the loss to giving up a lot of offensive and defensive opportunities. She said, “The game was hard for us to swallow, Northeastern had luck.” The Pride fall to 6-9 (2-4 CAA) with the loss.
In their final weekend of the regular season, the Pride face Towson on Friday and Delaware on Sunday in must- win matches if the girls want to secure a solid chance in being granted a playoff berth. Coach De Angelis said, “We have to play a full 70 minutes.”
Seniors Nadine Surak and Pemba Ramdoo believe that their team possesses enough talent and skill to beat any of the teams in the CAA. Though she could not understand what went wrong after the Northeastern game, Captain Rambo is confident that her team will make the playoffs. She said, “I believe in our ability to be better than we have been.”
Charlia Warner and the Hofstra Pride saw their playoff hopes slip further away after losing to Northeastern Huskies on Sunday. An 11-day layoff preceded the 7-1 thrashing. (Jeff Herman)