The Hofstra women’s lacrosse team is back to its winning ways after a 15-2 win over the Wagner College Seahawks on Tuesday, March 7. The win was highlighted by a robust four-goal game by junior attacker Kerry Walser. This win moves the Pride to a 3-4 record on the season, and Wagner drops to 1-5.

Despite the large final score, this one started off slowly as both teams remained sharp on the defensive side throughout most of the first period. It was not until 11 minutes into the quarter that Hofstra’s Rachel Graff scored the opening goal of the game. About a minute later Hofstra’s Katie Kelly knocked in a free-position goal to push the lead to 2-0, where it sat at the end of the first period.

Hofstra continued to build upon their lead, as not even a minute into the second period Graff picked up her second goal of the game to make it 3-0. A spurt by senior attacker Taylor Mennella helped the team score three more uncontested goals in the span of two minutes, for a 6-0 score going into the halftime break. Mennella herself ended with seven points at the end of the game with three goals and four assists.

Hofstra continued their offensive explosion in the third period by tacking on two more goals early on. With just under four minutes left in the third, Graff completed her hat trick followed by another goal shortly after which saw the Pride take a 10-0 lead late in the third period.

However, before the end of the frame, Wagner got on the board when Megan Greco scored the Seahawks first goal of the game.

The start of the fourth period saw another offensive burst from Hofstra as the first five minutes included another three-goal barrage led by the Pride’s attacking group. With the score sitting at 13-1, Wagner tacked on another goal courtesy of Kelsey Scheidel.

Hofstra netted two more goals before the fourth stanza expired, with the game ending at a final score of 15-2. Hofstra goalkeeper Luchianna Cardello displayed an excellent performance in net, only allowing two goals with nine saves.

Hofstra’s next appearance will be on Sunday, March 12, against the No. 20 University of Southern California Trojans at home at James M. Shuart Stadium. Initial draw control is at noon.

Photo courtesy of Evan Bernstein