HEMPSTEAD, NY – The Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) women’s soccer tournament continued Sunday, Nov. 3, at the Hofstra Soccer Stadium as the No. 1 Hofstra Pride defeated No. 5 Elon University Phoenix in the tournament semifinals 3-1.
The Pride advance to the CAA championship game for the third straight year and will face No. 6 James Madison University Dukes in a rematch of last year’s conference championship on Saturday, Nov. 9.
The Phoenix came into this game fresh off a 2-1 victory over the No. 4 Northeastern University Huskies on Friday, Nov. 1 in the CAA quarterfinals. The last meeting between Elon and Hofstra was earlier this season on Sunday, Sep. 29, which resulted in a 5-0 win for the Pride.
Hofstra put pressure on Elon right out of the gate. Three minutes in, Miri Taylor found Sabrina Bryan on her left side and Bryan fired from distance with her left foot. The ball bounced and just squeezed by Elon goalkeeper Katrin Hauksdottir to give the Pride an early 1-0 lead. This would be the first of many chances for Bryan in this game, as she would finish with seven shots.
“I’m extremely fortunate to have that front six,” said Hofstra head coach Simon Riddiough. “They are special. With Gerry Lucey’s coaching in the offensive third, he’s getting the best out of them.”
Elon’s offensive chances in the first half were very miniscule, but the defense kept denying Hofstra any additional goals and kept the game within one. In the 38th minute, a corner kick by Hofstra was sent into the box where a header attempt from Lucy Shepherd was deflected out to Anja Suttner, who rifled it in and extended the lead to 2-0.The first real offensive chance for Elon came in the 43rd minute. A foul by Megan Fisher led her to being dealt a yellow card, the only booking of the game. A free kick from Elon’s Hannah Doherty found no one in the box and rolled out of play.
Hofstra kept pressuring Elon in the second half. The early minutes saw multiple shots from the offense, most of them being blocked. A penalty was given in the 53rd minute after a hard foul from Elon’s Kayla Hodges. The penalty shot from Lucy Porter was saved by Hauksdottir and kept the Phoenix alive.
The first shot on goal from Elon did not come until the 75th minute. A minute later, the Pride came charging down the right wing. Amanda Ebbesson set up a cross to Bryan and she would tap it in to score her second of the game and ninth of the season and make it 3-0 Pride with 15 minutes to play.
In the 79th minute, Elon saw some light as Carson Jones scored her 10th goal of the season and made it 3-1. In the 87th minute, Hodges sent the ball into a crowded penalty box in a desperation shot attempt. The ball would go untouched and hit the post and was eventually scooped up by Kuzmich. Elon would finish the game with only four shots and two shots on goal. Hofstra finished with 26 shots and five shots on goal. Hofstra now have their sights set on JMU and their third straight CAA championship.
“It’s always a battle with James Madison. Josh [Walters] is doing a fantastic job, they’ve got some really special players who I’m sure will come to Hofstra and be happy to play in the finals,” Riddiough said. “It’s going to be a classic CAA showdown between traditionally the two best programs over the last three or four years.”
Photo Courtesy of Adam Flash
