By Alana Pelosi, Sports Editor
Sunday afternoon was one of the biggest games for Hofstra women’s lacrosse all season when two undefeated Colonial Athletic Association rivals met in Virginia. After Friday’s victory over George Mason, the Pride traveled to Harrisonburg, VA, where its three-game conference win streak was snapped.
Against James Madison, Hofstra could not muster up an offense attack to take on the Dukes. A tired squad, Pride head coach Abby Morgan cited, was part of problem as on-field fatigue lingered from Friday’s matchup as well as the fact that JMU, who is now the lone undefeated team in CAA action, played well. “It was a lot more balanced than our other three losses with the idea of ‘them beating us’ versus ‘us beating ourselves,” said Morgan.
The game started off with both teams volleying back-and-forth for two goals at a time. It was after a 4-4 tie however, that the flood gates broke open for JMU and the Dukes proceeded to score five straight goals. With five seconds left in the first half, Hofstra senior attack Liz Falco scored her second goal of the game to narrow JMU’s lead to 9-5 but it did little to suppress JMU’s momentum. “We’ve had five films of their five previous games and [JMU] played the best that they’ve played on Sunday,” said Morgan.
The second half was still a struggle for the Pride and even though they made it through the second half out-shooting JMU, they were only able to net three goals. The Dukes went on to score the last four goals of the game leaving no room for a comeback.
Uncharacteristic of this season’s play for the Pride, it was beat by JMU in a lot of key categories like draw controls, ground balls and shots. “There was no time for us to regain our confidence one dropped ball by them could have helped us,” Morgan said, and then laughed and added, “They were lucky.”
The Pride fared better in Fairfax on Friday, when senior attack Corrine Gandolfi tallied three goals and two assists in the 12-9 victory over George Mason. Despite earning the win, victory did not come easily. Early on, the Pride got off to a quick lead with goals from junior Stephanie Rice and senior K’Leigh Vanaman but midway through the second half George Mason narrowed the gap to 10-9. It was then that Vanaman scored her second and third goals of the game increasing the Pride’s lead to 12-9.
The Pride will be home at Shuart Stadium on Friday to take on Delaware for its final regular season game of the year.
