The Hofstra men’s soccer team improved to a .500 record on Saturday, March 13 with a win over the Drexel University Dragons at Hofstra Soccer Stadium. The Pride shut out the Dragons for a 3-0 victory, bringing the Pride’s record to 2-2 after the opening match of Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play.

Matthew Vowinkel put in his second and third goals of the season for the Pride, while Ryan Carmichael earned his second as well. Vowinkel led the Pride with three shots taken, all of which were on goal, constituting half of the Pride’s six accurate attempts to find the back of the net. His two goals included a penalty kick that he put past Drexel’s goalkeeper Stephen Kopsachilis, giving the Pride a 3-0 advantage with just over five minutes to play.

“Really solid win. I liked our energy, our defensive togetherness, and you know, we have a few special players who can make things happen,” said Hofstra head coach Richard Nuttall. “I’ve got to give a lot of credit to Drexel; they caused us problems, especially [in the] first half playing through our press.”

Vowinkel opened the scoring in the match after collecting a long pass from the right side by Storm Strongin near the net, which he slid just past the goalkeeper into the bottom left corner of the goal. His goal put the Pride on the board for a 1-0 lead 26:44 into the match.

“Whether he’s having a good day, a bad day or an indifferent day, you know if you get the ball to him in the box, Matt Vowinkel is going to score more often than not,” Nuttall said. 

After both teams remained scoreless for the remained of the first half, the Pride came out of halftime with a plan, and they executed quickly for a goal just 37 seconds into the second half. Vowinkel got to a loose ball just outside the box, and with two Drexel defenders focused on him, he sent a pass behind his body to Luca Tausch who drove into the box on the left side. Kopsachilis was unprepared for the cross, which Tausch placed right in time for Carmichael to knock it in for the 2-0 lead.

The Pride took seven corner kicks in the match while now allowing the Dragons any. Hofstra also maintained a 10-6 advantage in shots taken. Vowinkel’s two goals marked his fifth game with the Pride finishing with multiple goals scored.

Wessel Speel made four saves in the net for the Pride, shutting out the Dragons. Kopsachilis made three saves while allowing the Pride’s three goals.

The Pride will play their final non-conference match of the season on Tuesday, March 16 when they travel to Newark to face off with the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

Photo courtesy of Evan Bernstein/The Hofstra Chronicle