The No. 12 Hofstra University men’s soccer team suffered their first loss of the season at the hands of Monmouth University, 2-1, in West Long Branch, New Jersey, on Saturday, Sept. 21. The Pride’s six-game winning streak was snapped as they dropped to 6-1-1 overall and 2-1 in conference play.
Hofstra initially fell behind 33 minutes into the first half as Monmouth defender Bastian Hatcher found the bottom left of the net on a pass from forward Victor Andersson. The Hawks came out aggressively in the second half and doubled their advantage seven minutes into the restart as midfielder Sean Cadigan found the top left corner of the net.
The Pride got one back in the final minute of the game as forward Teddy Baker slotted it into the bottom right of the net to halve the deficit. Baker recorded his first goal of the season after missing the first four games due to an injury. However, it was too little, too late for the visiting team.
The reigning Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) champions outshot their opponents 14-13 but fell 6-4 in shots-on-goal. Goalkeeper Filippo Dadone, who entered the night with five shutouts in seven appearances, made four saves. Monmouth goalkeeper Eryk Dymora made three saves. Hofstra was called offside twice and had one less corner opportunity than the Hawks.
The pride showed an uncharacteristic lack of discipline on Saturday, being assessed three yellow cards, including one assessed to team captain Roc Carles in the second half for unsportsmanlike conduct, his team-leading third booking this season. Amidst an eventful final minute, Lennon Gill also picked up a yellow for the same reason. The Pride committed 15 fouls, one shy of their season high against American University, allowing the Hawks more set-pieces.
Forward Jacob Woznicki and midfielder Laurie Goddard led the team with four shots each, though neither contributed to the scoresheet. Woznicki leads the team with five goals but was held scoreless for a second consecutive match. Meanwhile, Goddard didn’t add to his goal tally despite leading the team with 30 shot attempts and 13 shots-on-goal for the season.
Senior midfielder Eoin Farrell didn’t play on Saturday as graduate Mylo Hall appeared in the starting 11, his first appearance in two weeks. Sean O’Donnell, who made his third appearance of the season against Monmouth, played for a season high 33 minutes.
With the victory, the Hawks improved to 4-0-4, remaining undefeated and snatching their first conference win. They also avenged last year’s overtime defeat to the Pride in the CAA Championship game.
The Pride is now only one point ahead of Monmouth in the conference standings and trails front-runners Elon University by just three. It makes their head-to-head clash with the Phoenix on Saturday, Sept. 28, even more crucial.
Before that, however, the road trip will continue as Hofstra visits Loyola University Maryland on Tuesday, Sept. 24. Kickoff from Baltimore is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Royce Dickson-Child
