Hofstra field hockey opens season with 8-0 thrashing of Merrimack
The Hofstra University field hockey team opened their season with a dominating 8-0 win over the Merrimack College Warriors at the Hofstra University Field Hockey Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 26. Coming off a season in which the Pride struggled to find the back of the net on many occasions, the Pride started the 2023 season with an offensive masterclass against the Warriors for their first win of the year.
Junior transfer Silvia Vetter made an immediate impact in her Hofstra debut, scoring two goals for the team. Sophomore Pilar Penaloza played in 17 games for the Pride last season and scored no goals, but scored two of her own in her first game of this season. All four of Penaloza and Vetter’s goals came in the second half.
Jamie Mc Millan, Samantha Spera, Kelly Levengood and Jamie Lewis each also scored a goal for the Pride in the contest, with Mc Millan, Levengood and Lewis each scoring their first career Hofstra goals.
Kesia Richardson led the way for the Pride in the assist department, as she recorded two assists in the contest. Levengood, Lewis, Mc Millan, Maya Williams, Riley MacIntosh, Adrianna Losiak and Teresa Karoff each recorded one assist.
Pieke Roos played the majority of the game in net for the Pride. Roos wasn’t called on much, only having to make two saves in 45 minutes. Freshman Hella Vorpagel made her Hofstra debut in net for the fourth quarter and made two saves in her time in net. Roos and Vorpagel combined for the shutout.
For Merrimack, Brooke Bolduc started the game in net and allowed five goals and only two saves. She was replaced by Sara DeSousa for the final quarter, but DeSousa also didn’t have much success, allowing all three shots she faced to go into the back of the net. In total, the Warriors goalie tandem allowed eight goals and only two saves.
The Pride’s domination of the game didn’t begin until the second half, with Hofstra only scoring one goal in the first half. The goal came off the stick of Coastal Athletic Association all-preseason team member Mc Millan, who scored in the 16th minute of the contest. The half would end with the Pride hanging onto a narrow 1-0 lead.
It wasn’t until the second that the Hofstra offense exploded. The Pride scored five goals in the third frame and added three more in the final quarter of action. The eight goals the Pride scored were the most they’ve scored in a single game since the 2015 season, when the Pride defeated Towson 9-0 on Oct. 11, 2015. That season was also the last time the Pride finished a season over .500 (14-6).
Hofstra, now 1-0, will look to build off the dominant victory in the next game when the Pride welcomes the Fairfield University Stags to Hempstead on Tuesday, Aug. 29.
Photo courtesy of Matteo Bracco
