The Hofstra University women’s lacrosse team celebrated 50 years of the program as well as former Pride member Alyssa Parrella’s jersey retirement on Saturday, April 11. The Pride took down Monmouth University in a 22-11 barnburner, fueled by Nikki Mennella’s 11 points. 

“Overall, just really proud of our team, especially on a day when we’re honoring 50 years of the program and having such a great turnout from our alumni,” said Hofstra head coach Shannon Smith about the win.”

Hofstra faced a back-and-forth first quarter as Monmouth grabbed the first goal, which was behind an effort by Shea Berigan. The Pride and the Hawks would trade off scoring as the quarter progressed, with Charli Joyce, Kate Lemery and Natalie DeMeo grabbing goals for the blue and gold. The quarter’s scoring ended with a Monmouth free position opportunity where Marlaina Grimm took the 4-3 lead for the Hawks. 

Monmouth pulled further ahead in the opening of the second quarter as they went on a 3-1 run in the first four minutes. Berigan completed her hat trick, and Sophia Lymberis tallied one for the Hawks while Julia Harris scored on a man-up chance for the Pride.

As the second frame progressed, Hofstra picked up their game, battling back before halftime. The Pride went on a 4-1 run to close the half with two goals from Mennella and a goal apiece from Joyce and Lemery. Despite almost doubling Monmouth’s first-half shot-on-goal total, Hofstra were only tied 8-8 at halftime.

With the score tied at half, Smith asked, “Who wants it more?” and reminded the team of their motto of controlling their own destiny.

 “I think they knew – you know – we could do better, and we could do more,” Smith said.

Smith was successful in firing her team up because Hofstra came out of halftime on fire. The Pride scored seven unanswered goals within the opening eight minutes of the third quarter. Mennella and Joyce each completed hat tricks of their own, with DeMeo, Kayleigh Bender and Shannon Steck joining them on the scoresheet.

Olivia Castaldo interrupted Hofstra’s streak with another goal for Monmouth. The Pride did not let that disrupt their groove, however, since Joyce and Steck each grabbed another goal while Jordyn Poll got her name on the scoresheet for the first time. Hofstra put the game out of question with an explosive 10-1 third quarter, putting them ahead 18-9 with 15 minutes left of play.

The final quarter saw the game settle down when Mennella tacked on goals six and seven while Bender scored on a man-up chance and Meaghan Tufano tallied her first goal of the day. Monmouth recorded two goals of their own, but Hofstra dominated and secured the 22-11 win.

The Pride’s dominant day included some new records, since Mennella tied her career-high point record with an 11-point outing. Mennella’s big day saw her climb the charts to third all-time in career points with 243, fifth in assists with 76 and sixth in draw controls with 146. In the draw circle, Madeleine Rudolph rewrote her career-high in draw controls with 13 of Hofstra’s 24 in the game. 

The Pride’s undefeated record in Coastal Athletic Association play will be on the line against Stony Brook University on Friday, April 17.