By Stacy Troiano
Last week head coach Simon Riddiough said that the opening weekend of conference play would be one of the most important for his Pride this season. He wanted them to set a tone, make a statement, and come away with two wins on the road against tough CAA opponents.
They did just that.
Following a 1-0 win on Friday at Towson, the Pride mounted an impressive comeback to defeat George Mason 2-1 in overtime on Sunday.
“I always say if you can split away games, then you’re going to do well in the conference,” Riddiough said. “So to go away and win both is a huge accomplishment, and I think it’s just another step in building the confidence and belief in this team.”
Although Hofstra was controlling momentum and getting good looks, they couldn’t get a goal across for the better part of the game. Mason went ahead at the 28:10 mark of the first half when Patriot forward Rachel Wiggins sent a ball over the Hofstra defense to fellow forward Annie Lebherz. Lebherz tracked down the pass and poked the ball just past Pride goalie Krystal Robens who came out to challenge.
The Patriots would hold the 1-0 lead for nearly the rest of the game. The Pride possessed the ball well and got a few looks out of set pieces, but couldn’t quite get the chances it needed to push the equalizer across.
But with just over nine minutes to play in regulation, senior forward Larkin Hargraves would end the drought. Pride defender Jess Crankshaw brought the ball down the right sideline and fired a cross to the front of the box, where Hargraves met it with a header into the right side of the net to tie the game at 1-1.
The crucial goal was Hargraves’ first of the year, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the Pride. The goal made her the 13th player on the Hofstra roster to score this season, which ties the school record held by the 2003 team.
The Pride defense would withstand a flurry of shots by Mason in the final minutes of regulation, as the Patriots had four attempts at the game-winner in the last five minutes.
It didn’t take long for the Pride to regain momentum in overtime and come up with the deciding goal. Just 49 seconds into extra time, freshman forward Kayla Pifer sent a cross into the box where senior scorer Brooke DeRosa corralled it behind the Mason defense and slotted a shot past Patriot goalie Kasey Davenport for her team-leading sixth goal of the year.
The game-winner sealed the gutsy comeback by the Pride and brought them back to Hempstead with an impressive 8-1 record; 2-0 in conference play. The 8-1 start also ties the Pride with the 1994 and 2003 teams for the best record in school history through nine games.
“We just kept plugging away,” Riddiough said. “It wasn’t the best soccer performance, but in respect to intensity, desire and refusal to lose, it was unbelievable.”
Sunday marked the second time this season that the Pride have fought back from a 1-0 deficit with under 10 minutes to play. They defeated Central Connecticut 2-1 in similar fashion on Sept. 2nd.
“There’s something special about this team,” Riddiough said. “I don’t know what it is. I can’t put my finger on what it is, but I’m pretty sure it’s something to do with the desire and the heart, and each player exemplifies that.”
“It’s too complex to give individual names in this situation. It’s not even just the starting 11. It’s all 24 players we have,” Riddiough added. “It’s almost like a unified energy, which pushes everyone to succeed in those situations. It’s just an amazing thing to see from the coaching staff perspective.”
Riddiough and the Pride have little time to rest, as two tough CAA opponents lurk this weekend. They take on William and Mary on Friday, who was the preseason favorite to win the conference. The Tribe are 7-3 overall and 2-0 in the CAA, and they have a win against then-2nd ranked North Carolina to their credit this season. On Sunday, Hofstra will battle last year’s conference champ Old Dominion, who is 5-2-1 overall and 1-1 in the CAA.