Hofstra mounted a late rally to nearly erase a three-goal deficit before losing, 3-2, to William and Mary in the quarterfinal round of the CAA Championship.
Freshman Genna Kovar and junior Ashleigh Daniels each scored for the Pride, as Hofstra posted a 21-9 advantage in shots and garnered 10 penalty corners compared to the Tribe's four at the U.S. Field Hockey National Training Center.
But William & Mary survived thanks to goalkeeper Carrie Thompson's 12 saves, allowing the Tribe to advance to the semifinals to play No. 1 James Madison Saturday. Hofstra ended its season one game above .500, finishing 10-9 overall and 4-5 against the conference.
The fifth-seeded Pride fell behind No. 4 William and Mary by three goals in the opening 24 minutes before Kovar (Hampton Bays, NY) put the Pride on the scoreboard by slamming in a hard shot off Kristin Thompson's (Bridgetown, Barbados) pass from the top of the circle. Kovar's fifth goal of the season cut the lead to 3-1 before halftime.
William and Mary took control early. Wesley Drew and Katie Broaddus scored off penalty corners and Jenna Cinalli ripped a shot from the top of the circle that beat freshman goalkeeper Amanda Heyde (Yorktown Heights, NY) near the left post.
Drew's tally opened the scoring at the 15:16 mark when the junior from Virginia Beach excited the hometown crowd by taking Broaddus' feed and finding the back of the net. Broaddus made the scoresheet again nearly four minutes later for the two-goal lead.
Cinalli capped the Tribe's offensive outburst, adding her team-leading eighth goal just 4:13 after Broaddus' tally to put William and Mary up 3-0.
Daniels (Bethany, CT) slimmed the Tribe's lead to 3-2 after helping the Pride convert a penalty corner14:32 into the second half. It marked Daniels third goal of the season, which Amy-Lee Levey set up near the top of the circle.
Daniels' goal epitomized the final 35 minutes for the Pride, as Hofstra out-shot William and Mary 10-1 in the second half. The Tribe faced nine penalty corners, though Carrie Thompson and the defense in front was able to stop eight of those attempts to advance in the single-elimination tournament.
Kovar, who earned CAA Rookie of the Week honors earlier in the season, recorded one of her best performances of the season. The first-year standout logged a game-high six shots, all on goal, and utilized her speed to initiate several odd-man rushes.
Playing in their final collegiate games, seniors Brit Blankmeyer (Convent Station, NJ) and Charlia Warner (Bridgetown, Barbados) each registered two shots. Kristin Thompson's assist gave the junior 26 points, which tied her with Warner for the team lead.
Fellow seniors Erica Suitch (Mountaintop, PA) and Katy Vitolo (Somers, NY) ended their college careers on positive notes. Both made crucial defensive saves, including Suitch's block early in the first half. With the Tribe pressuring the net and a deflection in front elevating a shot, Suitch was able to bat the ball out of the air, preventing it from crossing the goal line.
Freshman goalkeeper Amanda Heyde benefitted from the help. The first-year netminder also bailed out her defense at times, making three saves in playing all 70 minutes.
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