The Hofstra Pride men’s lacrosse team defeated the Fairfield University Stags 15-7 on Friday, March 26 at Rafferty Stadium in Fairfield, CT.
It had been 24 days since the men’s lacrosse team last played a game. The team was prepared, however, as they started Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) action with a win over Fairfield.
Despite Trent Moran breaking the ice with scoring for the Stags, Michael Altmann scored his first goal of the season to tie the match early.
The Stags’ Taylor Strough answered by giving Fairfield a 2-1 lead as both teams headed to the second period.
The Pride got themselves rolling at the start of the second period, as Justin Lynskey scored his tenth goal of the season to tie the game at two apiece.
Ryan Tierney got in on the action shortly after, giving the Pride a one-point lead with his 24th goal of the season. Bryce Tolmie followed him up, extending the Hofstra lead to two goals, and Lynskey added his second goal of the day after forcing Fairfield to take a timeout.
Despite Strough and Tyler Wuchte bringing the Stags within a goal of the Pride, Riley Forte answered with his sixth goal of the season to extend Hofstra’s lead back to two goals. After Forte’s goal, Ryan Tierney brought the Pride back to a three-goal lead heading into the half.
Hofstra extended their lead as Forte added his second goal of the game and Lynskey found the back of the net for his third, extending the margin to five points.
After Dylan Beckwith had the Stags’ fifth goal of the game pushing Fairfield’s deficit to four points, the Pride went on a four-goal run to end the period.
Forte found the back of the net for his third goal of the night, and James Philbin soon chipped in on the scoring as well. Ryan Tierney added two more goals to close out the period as the Pride led the Stags 13-5 heading into the fourth period.
The Stags opened the fourth with a Patrick Drake goal, and Strough followed Drake on the next possession to find the back of the net for his third goal of the day.
With a little over five minutes left, Ryan Tierney added his fifth goal of the game. Minutes later, Tolmie added to the Pride’s lead with his second. The clock ran down and the final score remained at 15-7 for a Hofstra victory.
Hofstra’s record improved to 4-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play.
Bobby Casey got the win for the Pride in his season debut. He had 11 saves in the match. Brian Herber won 18 of his 24 faceoff opportunities while also collecting a team-high 12 ground balls.
After Friday night’s performance, Ryan Tierney is 14 goals away from breaking the CAA record for career goals.
The Pride looks to Tuesday, March 30 as they are scheduled to continue conference play against the University of Massachusetts Amherst Minutemen at the James M. Shuart Stadium. Faceoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Photo Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
