The three-time defending Colonial Athletic Association champion Hofstra Men's Soccer team signed three local Long Island players in the spring signing period, it was announced today by Head Coach Richard Nuttall. The signees include forward John Alberda (East Northport, NY/Commack HS), defender/midfielder Joseph Amendolare (Greenlawn, NY/Harborfields HS), and defender Steven Ehrichs (Brentwood, NY/Brentwood HS).

Alberda is expected to help replace some of the scoring punch left by graduated senior All-American Michael Todd (40 career goals), while Amendolare and Ehrichs will help fill the void left by graduated senior defender Gary Flood (Hauppauge, NY), who is now with the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer.

"We are extremely excited about our recruiting class this year," said Nuttall. "We feel that these are three of the top players on Long Island and will help us address all of our needs for next year. We think it is extremely important for our program to be able to keep the best local players at home, so we are absolutely thrilled to have these three exceptional young men join us." 

Alberda was a four-year varsity starter at Commack High School, where he was named a high school All-American in 2006. He was also an all-conference selection all four seasons, and was a two-time All-New York State selection. He set a Commack career record with 86 goals, and a single-season record with 32 goals as a junior.

"John is simply a prolific goal scorer," said Nuttall. "He has extremely quick feet and has the ability to go 1 v 1 with speed. He is one of those rare players who just seems to have a knack for finding the back of the net." 

Amendolare was a four-year varsity starter at Harborfields High School, where he was an all-county selection in 2006 and a three-time all-league and all-conference selection. He helped Harborfields to a 2006 league title by scoring 17 goals and adding 11 assists.  

"Joe strikes a great left-footed ball, and has the speed and ability to get involved in the attack up and down the left flank," said Nuttall. "He is a tough, hard-nosed player, who is a strong ball-winner and is great in the air."

Ehrichs started for two years at Brentwood High School, which he helped to a 22-1 record and a junior and a 15-2-5 record as a senior. He helped Brentwood to Long Island championships as both a junior and senior, while leading the Indians to the New York State semifinals as a junior and to the finals as a senior. He was a two-time all-league and all-county selection and was named a 2006 exceptional senior.

"Steven is a commanding presence in the back," said Nuttall. "He has the ability to play anywhere across the back line. He has very quick feet, is strong in the air, and he reads the game exceptionally well."

Hofstra has won the last three Colonial Athletic Association championsips, making it one of only three men's soccer programs in the country which have won each of its last three conference titles (along with New Mexico and Western Illinois). A year ago, the Pride finished 12-6-3 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with a 2-0 win over Providence in front of 1,450 fans at Hofstra Soccer Stadium.