Hofstra narrowly defeats LIU

Courtesy of a Samantha Spera goal, the Hofstra Field Hockey team outlasted the Long Island University (LIU) Sharks with a narrow 1-0 victory.

The win bolstered the confidence in Hofstra field hockey head coach Courtney Veinotte and her structure for this season’s team.

“Trusting the process and seeing this all come through has been really neat,” Coach Veinotte said. “They’re workers, they’re not getting rattled by scores, they’re not getting rattled by records, they’re focusing every day and every opportunity.”

It is the second shutout victory for the Pride this season as they now possess a 3-4 record this season.

The lone goal of the game came less than two minutes into the game. The sophomore midfielder-defender hybrid Lieke Gorsse successfully connected with first year Adrianna Losiak who quickly saw her linemate, senior midfielder Samantha Spera, had a better scoring position on the field considering the lack of defenders immediately surrounding her. With a gaping net, Spera made no mistake. It was the senior’s second goal of the season and her career.

“Whether its small groups at practice, she’s found a voice,” Coach Veinotte said. “Pure work ethic has brought her that opportunity.”  

The Pride tilted the field in their favor with repeated chances, registering a total of six shots, while keeping the midfield congested and only allowing two shots in their defensive end. The first quarter expired, marking the third time this season in which Hofstra opened the scoring of the game.

LIU got some momentum back in the second quarter as they outshot the Pride 1-0. The Sharks came close to making it a tie game with three penalty corner attempts, but Hofstra starting goalie Merlijn van der Vegt allowed no goals.

LIU gave a valiant effort in the third and fourth quarters but couldn’t beat van der Vegt’s goaltending, who made three saves to seal the shutout victory for Hofstra.

“The game itself was a really tough game and physical game, and sometimes, you know, keeping composure and trying to stay as skillful as possible through those games, you know, it's tough,” Coach Veinotte said. “And I'm really proud of the team keeping their composure.”

Photo courtesy of Neil Miller/Hofstra Athletics