After last week’s emphatic win, the Hofstra University men’s lacrosse team fell back down to Earth with a 16-8 loss to the United States Naval Academy on Saturday, Feb. 10. The team now sits at 1-1 in the season.
Despite the result, there were some bright spots for the Pride. John Madsen scored a hat trick and is totaling five goals on the season, and Griffin Turner had two goals and an assist. On the other side of the pitch, Navy goalie Dan Daly stopped a career-high 14 shots en route to the win.
From the opening face-off, the Midshipmen had the jump when Peter Jackson opened up the offense with a goal under a minute into the game. The Pride has allowed a goal in the first minute in both of their games thus far. Hofstra struggled to respond offensively when Navy forced two shot clock violations in the first five minutes. Turner changed the narrative by getting the Pride on the board with his first goal of the season.
Playing got sloppier as the first quarter progressed, with Navy losing the ball to Hofstra’s JT Roselle. Roselle passed it to Madsen who converted it into a goal. This was the only time the Pride led the game with a 2-1 score. Roselle led both teams with three forced turnovers and five ground balls.
The second quarter opened up with a vastly different Navy team, as characterized by their 3-0 shutout period. Navy’s success went hand in hand with Zach Hayashi who dominated at the face-off with 16 out of 23 face-offs won. The Midshipmen had possession of the ball to start drives which stifled the Hofstra attack.
On the other half of the halftime break, viewers saw more of the same from Navy, extending their lead by as many as eight points.
Trevor Natalie broke the Pride’s near 20-minute scoring drought with his first of two goals on an assist from Turner. Xavier Arline, the Midshipmen’s leading scorer, traded goals with Natalie, adding two of his own. The Pride finished the third quarter down 12-4.
Even with the tall order ahead, Hofstra competed hard in the final frame. Hofstra forced eight turnovers and picked up 27 ground balls as they drove the Midshipmen back on their heels. On offense, the Pride’s shooting accuracy improved. Of Hofstra’s 31 shots, 22 hit the net. Colton Rudd found the scoresheet, and Madsen notched two more within the final two minutes. Last week’s CAA player of the week, Rory Jones, looked dangerous with three shots attempts but couldn’t score on Daly. Even with the good run from Hofstra in the fourth quarter, the lead was too much to overcome.
The Pride take the field again on Tuesday, Feb. 13, against New York rival St. John’s University. Initial face-off from James M. Shuart Stadium is set for 6 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics/Keith Lucas
