Pride offense explodes in lacrosse season opener

The Hofstra Pride men’s lacrosse team handed the Wagner College Seahawks a thorough 21-9 defeat on Saturday, Feb. 3. This marks the first time the Pride has won a season opener since 2022, when Hofstra defeated Merrimack College 8-7. Junior midfielder Rory Jones led the scoring with eight goals, tying Ryan Tierney for second-most in a single game in Hofstra lacrosse history. Attacker Colton Rudd added five goals and two assists of his own in this landslide victory.

“Today it was [Jones]’s turn,” Hofstra head coach Seth Tierney said about his offense. “[Jones] took a lot of hands-free shots today; he was moving without the ball and putting himself in a position to score as many as he did.”

The Seahawks got off to a fast start with a goal by Conor Julich just 31 seconds into the game.  Jones responded under a minute later. The Seahawks added another goal on the next possession, but after that, the energy shifted.

The Pride had more adrenaline on the next faceoff. Trevor Natalie recovered a ground ball and scored on his shot. Rudd scored just 15 seconds later. Before the Seahawks knew it, the Pride started a 10-0 scoring run with from two goals from Rudd, one from Natalie, five from Jones and two from John Madsen. The scoring run extended into the second quarter, forcing Wagner to make a substitution in goal.

“It’s so easy to play with your best friends,” Jones said. “Today happened to be my day, but anyone on this team can do it. We weren’t scoring many unassisted goals. As a unit, we worked together to find the best opportunity, and those chances paid off.”

Wagner broke the scoring drought with goals from Nick Martini and Carson Skinner. The Pride answered back with four of their own, spearheaded by two goals from Rudd. Hofstra led 15-5 at the half.

The Pride opened the third quarter with another goal from Jones 35 seconds into the half, and after that, it was time to test the durability of the team’s depth.

The large lead for the Pride changed the level of intensity for Hofstra, allowing Wagner to have consecutive good possessions. Sean Henderson made his mark on the game, saving four shots in a row and seven total as he held the Pride’s defense.

The depth offense did not disappoint, outscoring Wagner 6-4 in the second half. University of North Carolina transfer JT Roselle caused three turnovers and added an assist in his first game in Hempstead. Sophomores Vincent McDermott and Dylan Sebastian scored their first career goals for Hofstra as additional points of pride.

“We played a lot of the guys today, and I really like seeing how many different players got at least a point tonight,” Tierney said. “I’m hopeful that whoever got time today will continue to fight for playing time. I’m proud of them.”

The next time the Pride takes the field will be on Saturday, Feb. 10, against the United States Naval Academy Midshipmen. The opening faceoff from Annapolis, Maryland, is at noon.

 Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics/Lee S. Weissman