Hofstra seeks fifth straight NCAA bid

New look for attack, defensive midfield

Posted

A year after winning 13 of 16 games as well as the Colonial Athletic Association regular-season title and earning a school-record fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament bid, Hofstra’s men’s lacrosse coach Seth Tierney has plenty of parts to replace.

The Pride, which in 2011 ranked No. 1 in the country in defense (6.56 goals against average) and in the top 25 in offense (9.94 goals per game), lost its entire starting attack and defensive midfield but returns 26 players including All-America honorable mention goalie Andrew Gvozden.

“We had a great run last season and now we’ve got some holes to fill,” said Tierney, whose sixth season at the helm began with an 11-9 victory over Sacred Heart. “When so many faces change, there’s going to be growing pains,” he added. “We’ll develop new chemistry and learn from mistakes as quickly as we can.”

Clearly one of Hofstra’s biggest strengths will be between the pipes. Gvozden, a senior captain, returns to start for a fourth year after a stellar season in 2011. He started all 16 games and led the nation in goals against average (6.00) and placed third in save percentage with a .602 mark. “He just snapped into another level,” Tierney said of Gvozden, who made his 40th career appearance in the opener. “He’s seen just about everything over three years and is our field general.”

Although the Pride’s defensive midfield lacks experience, it lost only one in-close defensive starter to graduation and has junior Cody Solaja and sophomore Corey Caputo returning to starting roles. Challenging for the third spot are juniors Mark Mullen and Michael Hamilton.

At defensive middie, senior Cole Koesterer is the front-runner for a long-stick spot, while sophomore Anthony Zappone is the top candidate to start at the short-stick position. Junior Rob Bellairs, a converted goalie, and senior Zach Pall, will also contribute. At the face-off X, junior All-America honorable mention John Antoniades is one of the best face-off specialists in the country. Last year, he ranked fifth in the nation, winning 174 of 271 face-offs for a .642 winning percentage. He also ranked 20th in ground balls with a team-leading 84.

A key to the offensive midfield’s success will be graduate student Steve Serling, who was granted another year of eligibility after an injury cut his 2011 campaign short after four games. The former South Side High School standout had three goals and six assists. “We’re thrilled Steve decided to come back,” Tierney said. Joining Serling on the first line is junior Ian Braddish, an All-CAA first team pick in 2011 after tallying 6 goals and 17 assists, and junior Adrian Sorichetti, who had 12 goals. Junior Aaron Jones provided a boost out of the gate with two goals against Sacred Heart.

A spike in production from the midfield would go a long way in keeping Hofstra in the mix in a wide-open and talented CAA. Replacing the 81 goals and 42 assists the Pride lost with the graduation of All-America honorable mention attacks Jay Card and Jamie Lincoln, as well as Stephen Bentz, won’t be easy. Sophomore Lance Yapor, who was limited to six games last season, sizzled in the opener against Sacred Heart with four goals and one assist. Senior Mike DeNapoli, a Lynbrook product, had a solid fall and will be looking to retain that momentum and hold down a starting spot. Another sophomore, Torin Varn, had a goal and an assist in the opener, and junior Drew Coholan and freshman Tyler Begley are in line to contribute.

The CAA schedule gets underway March 17 when Delaware visits for a 1 p.m. start.