By Sean Williams - Staff Writer Hofstra lacrosse and head coach Seth Tierney are not strangers to dramatic, heartbreaking season conclusions, but last year's triple overtime loss to Drexel in the CAA championship will sting for a long time. This year, Tierney’s squad returns plenty of experience, as well as a strong freshman class, in an attempt to capture the elusive CAA title and make a return to the NCAA tournament.
Last season looked like it could be disastrous, as opening losses to Marquette and Princeton made the Pride look like it was headed towards another .500 season or worse. But four straight wins put Hofstra back on the winning track, and despite a loss to St. John’s University in the middle of the season, the Pride went on to a scorching six straight wins before dropping the regular season finale against then-conference foe Penn State. A semifinal win in diluvial conditions against Delaware led to the fateful championship game against Drexel.
Hofstra’s 11-5 record featured its typical number of close games, as Tierney’s teams always seem involved in nail biters. However, unlike some years past, the Pride seemed more poised in overtime and in close games. Kris Clarke took over Hofstra's John Antoniades’ spot at the faceoff position as a freshman, and was successful, if not dominant, at the X. Chris Selva continued to display his propensity for jaw-dropping saves in the net. Sam Llinares emerged from a promising freshman year to invigorate Hofstra’s attack alongside Torin Varn and Lance Yapor. The Pride seemed to improve as the year went along, and Tierney certainly hopes that that trend continues.
KEY LOSSES The Pride lost a number of seniors on the offensive side of the ball, as Torin Varn, Lance Yapor and Drew Coholan graduated. The trio combined for 72 goals and 21 assists, the bulk of the Pride attack. Their experience is certainly the largest cumulative loss the Pride suffered as a team, as there are now a number of holes to fill in offense with question marks.
Anthony Zappone and Corey Caputo also graduated, two players who offered grit and ground ball savvy to Hofstra’s defense.
In addition, Steve Sattherthwaite, Nick Altmann and Peter Reilly, all young substantial contributors, left the program. Altmann was expected to be an eventual starter offense, and the absence of Sattherthwaite and Reilly introduce a conundrum on defense for the coaching staff, who now must replace the majority of its defensive unit from last year.
KEY RETURNS Sam Llinares, a junor at attack, will be the cornerstone of the Pride’s offense. The dynamic Long Island native can do it all; from assists to scoring, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him receiving some kind of All-American recognition in May. His 53 points led the team last season.
Chris Selva, the senior in goal, is known for his daring, alert, and entertaining play style. After a breakout sophomore year and a solid junior season, Selva provides a steady presence at the back of Hofstra’s defense.
Kris Clarke, sophomore FOGO, earned the starting spot at the X last year and made good use of it, posting a .556 rate. Despite rule changes at faceoff, Clarke will remain an integral part of Hofstra’s team.
Mike Malave and Korey Hendrickson are senior midfielders with a ton of experience and a good deal of firepower. The duo combined for 43 goals last year.
Finn Sullivan is a defensive powerhouse, and an underrated factor in the Pride’s success. Especially in a year with this kind of defensive turnover, Sullivan will need more big moments like last year's shutdown of Jesse King vs. Ohio State.
These three can hardly be mentioned apart from each other: Steve Romano, John Reicherter and Ryan Rielly roll of the tongue and are maniacs on the field. Each player adds speed and savvy to the defensive midfield, and their abilities to transition into attack help Hofstra keep opponents on its toes. There’s no question that this trio anchors Hofstra’s defense, and arguably the entire team.
SCHEDULE Marquette University, 2/14 —Joe Amplo’s return to Hofstra was a little more triumphant than former boss Tierney would have hoped. The Golden Eagles ruined the 2014 Pride’s homecoming with an 11-9 victory that wasn’t even that close. Hofstra’s defense looked confused early and it seems clear that the Pride underrated their opponent. This year the Pride will be sure to avoid the same mistake, but Marquette, though a young program, is far from an easy out. The 2015 team already squeaked past preseason top 20 Lehigh, and have shown signs of improvement every year. While the Pride will be favorites at home, this one is far from a guarantee.
@Princeton, 2/20— The Tigers have had Hofstra’s number the last couple of years, but all-world midfielder Tom Schreiber has graduated, and last year’s competition was in Hofstra’s favor until the final minutes. These two teams are very evenly matched, and this year’s game promises to be just as close.
Manhattan, 2/24— This is a new game on Hofstra’s schedule, and frankly, it’s one Hofstra should win handily. The midweek game may offer Tierney a chance to tinker with lineups a little bit.
@Georgetown, 2/28—The once renowned program has fallen on hard times lately, but Coach Kevin Warne has a difficult schedule planned this year in anticipation of Georgetown’s rebound to prominence. This could be a bit of a trap game for Hofstra because it’s the third game in a week and it’s on the road. Last year’s Georgetown/Hofstra matchup at Shuart lead to overtime, but the Pride were in control for most of the matchup.
@Ohio State University, 3/7—Hofstra didn’t have too much difficulty with Ohio State last year, though the Buckeyes were a preseason darling. Though they’ve moved to the Big Ten, OSU has struggled to meet expectations as a program. This year’s opening loss to Detroit won’t help that image. All that being said, star Jesse King makes the Buckeyes a big threat, especially with the Pride on the road.
Providence, 3/14— Another winnable home game for the Pride as Providence comes to Shuart. The only fear here is if Hofstra overlooks this matchup for one three days later against regional rival St. John’s.
St. John’s, 3/17—A game that has haunted the Pride in recent years. Last year Hofstra dropped a close contest in Queens, though they were without Llinares. The graduation of Kieran McArdle diminishes this team’s attack, though this scrap between familiar opponents has ‘dogfight’ written all over it.
UMass, 3/21—Umass has been down in recent years, but their young core and familiarity with Tierney’s schemes makes this match a dangerous one.
@Delaware, 3/28—It’s difficult to know exactly how good Delaware will be this year, and Hofstra must be careful not to slip up on the road.
Drexel, 4/4—You just know Tierney has this one circled on the calendar. Despite the loss of some key graduates, Drexel returns plenty and this disciplined team from Philadelphia always seems to make it close with the Pride. Watch senior (and Huntington native) Nick Saputo at the faceoff X, this preseason All-America candidate has the potential to take over the possession of a game.
Marist, 4/7—Marist could sneak up on Hofstra after the Pride transition away from some of its difficult conference schedule. In Hofstra’s perfect world, the Red Foxes serve as a tuneup game for Cornell. In reality, Marist is a scrappy team that, while the underdog, could put up more of a fight than expected, especially on such short notice.
@Cornell, 4/11—The Pride’s biggest win last year came at home in overtime against this powerhouse Ivy team. This year, Hofstra hits the road to tackle one of lacrosse’s best squads. Connor Buczek is a nightmare to defend, Cornell’s defense is perennially tough, and the environment in Ithaca will be hostile. This game is critical to Hofstra’s chances at an at-large bid. Lose this game, and the case for nonconference success gets a whole lot weaker.
@Towson, 4/18— The 2013 CAA winners got off to a hot start last year until they ran into the Pride at Hofstra. The Tigers had difficulty mounting consistent scoring against the Tierney’s defense, and Hofstra won despite the ugly weather. This year, the Tigers look to be improved, with freshman and Massapequa’s own Ian Kirby seeking to make a sudden impact.
@Fairfield, 4/24—The Pride’s final road stretch is brutal, and this game is no exception. Fairfield returns a lot this year, and are a trendy sleeper pick to take the CAA. This is a very difficult game for Hofstra that will likely have CAA Tournament implications.
PREDICTION The Pride were on the bubble of an at-large selection for the 2014 NCAA Tournament, but the 11-5 Hofstra squad was beaten out by 10-6 Harvard. Hofstra’s relatively weak strength of schedule did not help their case, with only two nonconference wins coming against top 20 teams. Admittedly, this flaw is hard to blame on Hofstra’s scheduling, as two presumptive top 20 teams, Ohio State and Penn State, did not live up to expectations.
This year, the nonconference schedule on paper is even weaker than it was last year, so for Hofstra to succeed, they have two options for a hope at an at-large. They either need to win more games (duh) or the CAA needs to be stronger than it was last year. Unfortunately for the Pride, the CAA continuously resides in the periphery of the lacrosse elite, and a chance at an at-large bid in addition to the automatic bid is far from guaranteed. But the likes of what should be a very strong Fairfield squad, an improved Towson group, and defending champion Drexel indicates that this year the CAA could be stronger than it has been in some time, even with Penn State’s transition to the Big Ten.
One thing that no preview can address, however, is the possibility of injury. The Pride have some depth, but an injury, especially to somebody like Llinares or Clarke, could spell disaster.
Predicting Hofstra to win the CAA is no certainty because even weaker teams like Delaware or UMass can show up to topple one of the conference powers. The parity of the CAA renders any prediction I have essentially useless. While I believe Hofstra has a good shot at the CAA title, I actually believe they’ll make the NCAA Tournament as one of the elusive at-large bids. My take is that an experienced and surehanded Pride squad fights through its nonconference schedule with minimal damage, and does well enough in the conference to make it impossible to deny them an at-large bid, even if they miss out on the conference championship.
PRIDE TAKES Junior Sam Llinares, Attack “Last year and this year were some of the best teams Hofstra’s had.” “We realize that you can’t start the season like we did last year and we let some games get away from us, games we thought we should win, so we obviously can’t take anything for granted this year.”
Senior Chris Selva, Goalie On defense: “We have two new guys out there, we have Finn Sullivan who’s returning and had a great year for us last year.” “We have a lot of experience with Romano, Reicherter and Rielly up top, so that leadership up there is helping down low as well.” “We’ve lived together for four years now so it’s awesome to have that relationship off the field and on the field. We click so well … we don’t even have to talk during games, we just know what everybody is gonna do.”
Senior Mike Malave, Midfield “Guys have worked so hard this offseason. Of course we work hard every year but this year in particular we’ve really put an emphasis on our own individual game.” “Coach T always says to keep it in your own hands, decide what you can decide and control what you can control so … we just need to take it upon ourselves [to win the CAA championship] and get in.” “There’s always that word ‘potential’ – there’s so much potential with this [2015] class and…I’m going to be the hardest critic…we haven’t lived up to it yet.” Malave mentions Alderman, Kavanagh, Golden and Griffin as freshmen to watch out for.
Head Coach Seth Tierney Tierney believes that sophomore FOGO Kris Clarke has adapted well to the rule changes, and thinks Clarke has improved his game in regards to more ground balls and more trust with the wings. “I hope that they get everything they’ve put in, because they’ve put in an awful lot. But there’s nothing that’s guaranteed.”