Over the course of Simon Riddiough’s tenure as head coach of the Hofstra University women’s soccer program, he has earned the Pride a reputation for excellence that is nearly unmatched in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA). In his 20 years at the helm, the Pride has won eight CAA Championships, been ranked nationally and achieved success in the NCAA Championship tournament. While last year was far from a failure, it did not live up to the lofty standard that the Pride has set over the last two decades.

“Last season I thought we did a good enough job to get to where we were, and I thought we were disappointed in the end,” Riddiough said. “Overall, it was a so-so year for us and our program, but it was good enough to build on for this year.”

Hofstra set a program record for draws on the way to an 8-5-6 record throughout the campaign, along with a 5-3-2 conference record. They earned the fourth seed in the CAA tournament and,  after a dramatic opening round win over the University of Delaware, fell to Monmouth University in the semifinals for the second consecutive year.

“As a team, I think we can say that we were disappointed, especially to lose again to Monmouth in the semifinals,” said midfielder Millie Davies.

Davies, who was honored as a member of the All-CAA First Team last year, already has the Oct. 5, rematch against the Hawks circled on her calendar.

“Even from my freshman year, they’ve always been circled,” Davies said. “To me, Monmouth is definitely a big rivalry.”

While the Pride lost plenty of talent, as all college teams do from season to season, they retained three program cornerstones who many thought had played their last match at Captains’ Field: All-CAA Third Team defender Gabriella Marte, All-CAA Third Team forward Mathilde Braithwaite and defender Olivia Pearse, who missed all but three matches last year.

“We’re excited about having all three back to bring a core of maturity and leadership; each of them brings different qualities to the team,” Riddiough said. “Tilly [Braithwaite] is an electrifying, dynamic forward. Livvy [Pearse] and Gabby [Marte] should be shoring up the defense and giving us some senior leadership and stability in the back.”

Marte’s presence specifically is expected to majorly help the defense sustain the loss of three-year captain Louise Hayden, who graduated after the 2024 campaign. Hayden was not only a vocal leader but a shutdown defender who earned All-CAA honors three separate times.

“Marte’s been our best player if not our best player so far,” Riddiough said.  “She’s matured tremendously over the past six months. She’s become a really quality leader.”

Despite the solid performance thus far from Marte, Pearse and other defensive players such as Sasha McTiffin, the loss of Hayden is still felt, particularly in the locker room.

“Having [Hayden] on the back end, you always knew you had that stability.” Davies said, “She was a good leader on and off the field. I definitely miss playing with [Hayden].”

While plenty of players who have been members of the Pride for at least a season are seeing more playing time, four transfers have made their way to Long Island. Lilly Bailey transferred from Morehead State University for her sophomore year and has staked her claim as the starting goalkeeper. Bailey had a spectacular freshman season for the Eagles last year, keeping five clean sheets and leading them to the NCAA tournament.

“[Bailey’s] come in and cemented her spot as the starter,” Riddiough said. “She’s very comfortable with the ball at her feet. She’s got good athleticism and covers a lot of ground.”

Defensively, Jacksonville State University transfer Alexia Des Croisselles has played in each match so far, increasing her minutes in each match and starting in the last four.

Polly Watson came to Hofstra from the University of Central Florida after missing games due to injuries during her time as a Knight. Despite a difficult start to her season, she rose to a challenge laid out to her by Riddiough and has become one of the team’s top midfielders.

“I hadn’t been a huge fan of [Watson] so far this year, we had a meeting a couple of days ago to discuss her performances and I put a challenge onto her,” Riddiough said following the Pride’s 2-2 draw to Fairleigh Dickinson University on Aug. 28 – a match which saw Watson find her first goal of the season. “I need her to be a bit more active, I need her to do more defensive stuff, and she stepped up to the challenge.”

This isn’t the first time Watson and Davies have laced up their cleats together.

“Me and [Watson] have actually played with each other from the age of nine, when I found out that [Riddiough] was looking at [Watson], I was trying to jump on it straight away,” Davies said. “[Watson] is amazing on and off the field.”

Watson, along with mainstay Aimee Hodgson, has excelled in the midfield. The two seniors often establish control from the beginning of every match, which has allowed Hofstra to dominate in possession. They possessed the ball for 76% of the first half against Loyola University Maryland on Saturday, Sept. 6.

Manon Lebargy, a transfer from Middle Tennessee State University, adds incredible offensive gifts to the Pride’s attack. Lebargy scored 13 goals last season and raked in the accolades: Conference USA Midfielder of the Year and All-Conference First Team, as well as an All-Region Third Team nod.

“We’re hoping that [Lebargy will] settle into how we play and how we want to play and continue in that same vein of form where she’s scoring goals for fun,” Riddiough said.

Lebargy and Davies are expected to form a lethal one-two punch for Hofstra this season. Davies caught unbelievable fire at the end of last year, pouring in 12 points in the final six games of the season.

“If you don’t take chances, you’re not going to score,” Davies said. “I was just trying to get my shots off and it was paying off.”

While Davies is fighting through injury now, expectations are high for her once she’s recovered.

“Coming into preseason, [Davies] was on fire: she was dominating,” Riddiough said.  “We played Seton Hall [University] and Rutgers [University] in the preseason, and she was the best player on the field for all the teams. When she’s on fire and playing with confidence, she’s unstoppable. We need her to be healthy, fit and strong. If she can do that and maintain that for two months, we’re in a good place.”

Despite some bumps in the road, the expectation is still excellence and Davies believes that the team’s experience will work in their favor.

“I think this year as a whole we are a very tight-knit team,” Davies said. “Having these players who I’ve played with consistently since my sophomore year helps, I think we all know how each other play… I think we’re all on the same page with what we all need.”

As for Riddiough, his mindset for his team is simple:

“I’ll put money on my team to step up when necessary, and I think this group will.”