The Hofstra men’s lacrosse team dropped their fourth straight game on Saturday, March 9, losing 14-8 to Ohio State.
The loss brings Hofstra’s record to 2-4 after beginning the season 2-0, while the No. 9 Buckeyes came into James M. Shuart Stadium and continued their undefeated season, improving to 6-0.
Tre Leclaire led all scorers with four goals, while freshman Jack Myers added three goals and three assists in an effort to keep Ohio State as one of only two teams in Division I lacrosse yet to drop a match-up.
Whit Stopak led Hofstra with his seventh and eighth goals of the season, while fellow freshman Matt Elder added a goal and an assist.
The Pride fell behind early, as they found themselves trailing by four goals just 11 minutes into the first quarter.
Following a timeout after going down, Hofstra turned things around, scoring two goals before the end of the first quarter. Goals from Riley Forte and Stopak tied the game up with 6:46 remaining in the half.
Ohio State responded with two goals off man-up advantages before tacking on three more goals heading into the halftime break.
The Buckeyes wasted no time adding onto their lead in the second half, scoring just 30 seconds into the third quarter. They added three more goals in the period while keeping Hofstra off the board as their lead ballooned to 14-4 early into the fourth quarter.
The Pride scored four unanswered goals in the fourth with goals coming from Ryan Tierney and Mark Ellis to make the score look respectable as any comeback effort for the Pride was too little, too late.
Although goalkeeper Bobby Casey had a rough game, the redshirt sophomore recorded several impressive saves. However, the Ohio State offense was too much to contain.
“The percentage of shot was so high, you can’t blame the goalie on that side of things,” said Hofstra head coach Seth Tierney.
Hofstra looks forward to getting back on track as they now prepare to host St. John’s University on Tuesday, March 12, at 7 p.m. in the James M. Shuart Stadium.
“We have to reevaluate everything as we go forward. We’re going to hope to get a couple guys back or at least healthier,” Seth Tierney said. “It’s a tough day. We’re going to learn from it, and we’re going to get better.”
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics
