The Hofstra Pride men’s soccer team defeated the Long Island University Sharks 2-1 on Tuesday, Oct. 1 at the Hofstra Soccer Stadium. Junior Adam Savill’s game-winning goal in the 79th minute capped off Hofstra’s second half comeback after falling behind 1-0 in the first half.
“It was a scrappy win on a tough night. LIU were feisty, worked hard and it was a good game,” said Hofstra’s head coach Richard Nuttall said.
Hofstra dominated for a majority of the first half, creating multiple chances to score, but missing wide on a number of shots.
The Sharks only managed to get off four shots in the first half but had three on-goal including a goal to take a 1-0 lead into the break.
Oscar Ramsay was a constant threat and nuisance for the LIU defense in the first half, leading all players with five shots. Although Ramsay didn’t score, his aggressive was key to Hofstra’s ability to pressure the LIU defense.
“[Ramsay is] a bright player with a good soccer IQ… he gets into good spaces,” Nuttall said. “The final piece he needed to do was relax in the box and finish one, but I was very pleased with Ramsay today.”
The Sharks opened up the scoring with a late first-half goal by Atha Coutroumpas in the 45th minute.
The Pride came out in the second half at full speed, but with a focus on finishing, paying off with two goals just seven minutes apart.
“We spoke about the tempo of the game, the energy we need, staying a bit calm in the box,” Nuttall said. “We knew we had to get the game into a higher energy mode and fortunately it worked out.”
Hendrik Hebbeker, who came on as a substitute in the second half, tied the game in the 72nd minute with a stellar goal. The freshman midfielder dribbled between two LIU defenders before finishing strong into the bottom-right corner for his second goal of the season.
“[Hebbeker is] incredibly skillful and a joy to watch. A Rolls-Royce type of player,” said Nuttall.
Just seven minutes later, Hofstra took the lead off a corner kick. It was Savill’s header that gave Hofstra the lead for good. George O’Malley was a key contributor to the play as well.
“[O’Malley] is a competitor, a warrior. He can be a bit overzealous at times, but he’s a competitor and that’s what we want on this team,” Nuttall said.
The Pride improve to 5-4 with the win and LIU drops to 4-5 after Tuesday’s loss.
Hofstra next host UNCW at Hofstra Soccer Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 12 p.m.
Image courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
