For the second-consecutive match, Lucy Porter scored two goals for the Hofstra women’s soccer team en route to a 5-1 victory over the Fairleigh Dickinson University Knights on Thursday, Feb. 25.

The Pride’s record improved to 2-0 following the victory. In addition to Porter’s two-piece, Hofstra’s remaining goals were put in by Lucy Shepherd, Sabrina Bryan and Alia Mentzell. Cayla Waterman was the Knights’ lone goal-scorer.

The Knights were unable to put up much of a fight, taking just three shots in the match. The Pride, meanwhile, took 21 shots total with 12 shots on goal, forcing seven saves from FDU’s keeper Cassandra Marcoux.

“[Are] there little things that we could do better? Yes,” said Pride head coach Simon Riddiough. “But right now, nine goals in two games? I’ll take that.”

Porter opened up the scoring at 10:34 into the match when she collected a header just outside the box, got around the pursuing Naemi Hausen and sent her shot past Marcoux in goal. Her second goal came 23 minutes later, following up on a free kick from Jordan Littleboy that was initially deflected, and putting the Pride up by three points.

Five minutes prior to Porter’s second goal, Shepherd tallied her first of the season by sending a free kick over the heads of everyone on the field, including Marcoux.

“[Shepherd has] been working on her free kicks for a while now,” Riddiough said. “She took priority that she wants to take them for this season, and I’m glad that she scored. It’s a just reward, because she’s been doing a lot of individual work with our assistant coach Gerry [Lucey], and it paid off today.”

Shepherd’s goal was the first in a flurry of scores for the Pride, as Porter and Bryan both added to the Pride’s lead over a span of 6:19. Bryan’s goal came off a set piece with Miri Taylor sending a corner kick to Shepherd, who knocked it out to Bryan for the goal that made the score 4-0 with 9:50 left to play in the first half.

“We are too good to let teams linger around,” Riddiough said, “and I thought against Stony Brook [University] that we started off slow because we feel that we’re that good [that] we could get away with it. I put a bit more of a challenge today that [we’ve] got to step in, step up quickly and play with the kind of defensive pressure that we like to play at Hofstra, and that’s what we did.”

With less than five minutes to play, Mentzell, who scored just two goals last season, earned her first of the campaign when she tapped in a deflected shot from Bryan. Along with Bryan, Julie Lind was credited with the first assist of her career with the Pride, as her pass had set up Bryan’s initial shot. 

The undefeated Pride will host their third-consecutive game at the Hofstra Soccer Stadium on Wednesday, March 3 when they wrap up non-conference play against the University at Albany Great Danes.

Photo courtesy of Evan Bernstein/The Hofstra Chronicle