Hofstra Tops Towson, Pins Hopes on At-Large Bid
from press release
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Stephen Bentz tied a career
high with five goals and Dan Stein tallied the go-ahead goal with
4:31 remaining to lift #15 Hofstra to a 12-10 victory over #11
Towson in a CAA matchup at James M. Shuart Stadium Saturday
night.
Kevin Ford joined Bentz in logging Hofstra's only other
multi-goal game, scoring twice and adding two assists. Junior Jay
Card added two assists. Sophomore goalie Andrew Gvozden stopped
four shots in the Pride cage.
By beating the first-place Tigers, Hofstra closed out the regular
season with a 9-4 overall record and a 2-3 ledger against the
Colonial Athletic Association. Towson dropped to 6-7 and 4-1.The
Pride, which did not qualify for the CAA Championship Tournament,
will now wait until May 9 to see if they will receive an at large
bid to the NCAA Championship.
Stein broke a 9-all tie late in the fourth quarter, completing a
run from the left sideline before making a cut-in move at the
crease for his eighth goal of the year. Ford added a man-up goal a
little more than two minutes later on a bounce shot from 15 yards,
and Steven DeNapoli notched his fourth with 47 seconds to play to
boost the Pride lead to 12-9. Towson closed out the scoring with
nine seconds to play on Will Harrington's second goal of the
contest and 24th of the year.
The Pride got on the board 5:50 into the contest when Lincoln
took Jay Card's pass and fired a behind-the-head shot past goalie
Travis Love for a 1-0 lead. It was Lincoln's 33rd goal of the year.
Just 39 seconds later Tim Stratton fed Christian Pastirik all alone
in front of the crease for his 21st goal of the year.
Hofstra reeled off three unanswered goals in a 1:01 span to build a
4-1 lead. First, Tom Interlicchio ran from his defensive end, shook
off a defender and fired a 10-yard bullet for his fourth goal of
the season with 6:52 to play in the first quarter.
Bentz-who also collected six ground balls- then took a pass from
Ford in traffic and beat Love from six yards out 42 seconds later.
Brad Loizeaux then scored his 19th of the year 59 seconds later
from nine yards for a 4-1 advantage. Matt Hughes then closed the
gap for Towson with his ninth of the year from the right side of
the Pride cage with 1:37 to play in the quarter.
The two teams exchanged goals in the second quarter with Bentz
notching his second of the game, from Ford, 1:10 into the period.
Pastirik adding his second from Stratton with 6:07 to play in the
half as the Pride took a 5-3 lead into the locker room at
halftime.
The two teams again split eight goals in the third quarter as the
Pride continued to hold a two goal lead after three periods.
Hofstra scored the first two goals of the quarter as Kevin Ford
scored his 13th of the year from 18 yards out, and Bentz notched
his 26th from 10 yards out to boost the Pride lead to 7-3.
But the Tigers came right back with Carl Iacona posting his eighth
of the year and Stratton scoring his 14th of the season on a man-up
opportunity with 6:35 to play in the third, bringing Towson within
7-5.
Bentz tallied his fourth of the game1:07 later for Hofstra and
Peter Mezzanotte tallied his first of the year with 4:01 to play
foir Towson. Bentz then tied his career-high with his fifth of the
game and 28th of the year, scoring off long-stick middie Adam
Mojica's pass off the face-off. Pastirik then added his third,
taking Matt Lamon's feed from the center of the box scoring from 11
yards-out with five seconds to play in the third, making it a 9-7
contest entering the fourth quarter.
The Tigers tied it up in the first 6:31 of the fourth
quarter. Will Harrington notched his 23rd of the year, scoring just
off the crease, 2:37 into the quarter, and Pastirik scored his
fourth of the game and 24th of the year almost four minutes later
to tie the game at 9 before Hofstra's final three goal run..
Pastirik led the Tigers with four goals and two assists while
Stratton ended the contest with a goal and two assists. Love
finished the game with eight saves in the Towson cage. Hofstra
outshot the Tigers, 32-30, and picked up 35 ground balls to
Towson's 17. The Pride effort was helped by freshman face-off
specialist John Antoniades, who won 17 of 25 face-offs.
