Hempstead, N.Y. – Two road games in three days will provide a whirlwind start to Colonial Athletic Association play as Hofstra commences league play with a Friday night game at Elon followed by a Sunday matinee at William & Mary.
Hofstra (5-4) will conclude a stretch of seven-out-of-eight games on the road starting with a 7 p.m. kickoff at first-year CAA-member Elon. A rematch of the 2012 CAA Tournament semifinals will take place at Martin Family Stadium on Sunday at 2 p.m. with free live video available.
The Phoenix (4-4) will be looking to get its offense clicking in time for league play to begin. With nine goals in eight games, Elon will look to generate more than the 24 shots-on-goal the team has through non-conference play. Grace Bennett is the only Elon player to have multiple goals, notching two in eight games (with five starts).
Three goalkeepers have seen time this year, though Sydney Branson has started all eight games. Despite splitting the bulk of the time with Kate Murphy, Branson has allowed just three goals in 360 minutes for a 0.75 GAA and a .786 save percentage Elon is looking for its first clean sheet of the season.
Hofstra will look to challenge Branson as senior forward Sam Scolarici will try and add to her CAA-leading 10 goals. After setting the program record for career goals and points this season, the Aldie, Virginia native is one of the top scorers in the country. Entering Monday, Scolarici was tied for fifth nationally in Division for goals and tied for sixth in points with 22. Scolarici has already clinched a third straight double-digit goal-scoring season and could challenge her own Pride single-season record of 18 goals set just last season.
Junior forward Leah Galton scored in Hofstra's last game in a win at Monmouth and has six goals on just 12 shots-on-net. Galton, a MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List honoree, has constantly drawn multiple defenders to help free up space.
Scolarici has capitalized on Galton's playmaking ability and senior Amber Stobbs has been a factor in multiple positons, contributing two goals and two assists and has six shots in the last two games. At midfield, junior Jeannine Molleda and senior Lulu Echeverry each picked up assists in the Monmouth win and have stepped up with redshirt sophomore Jill Mulholland out with an injury. Echeverry set up Galton's first goal and Molleda set up freshman Kristin Desmond for the go-ahead one-timer in the 55th minute.
Desmond has earned a starting spot as a back in her first collegiate season but has also made a difference on the offensive end in earning her second CAA Rookie of the Week honors on Sept. 21. Desmond is coming off her first career two-goal game, which included the game-winner and the 83rd-minute insurance goal off a penalty kick. Desmond, the former Long Island Player of the Year out of Northport High School, has three goals in starting all nine games. She was named Big Apple Soccer's Women's College Player of the Week on Tuesday.
Galton was one of three Hofstra goal-scorers in the Pride's last meeting with William & Mary, in which the teams played to a 3-3 tie in the penultimate regular season game at Hofstra Soccer Stadium in 2013.
Hofstra is 5-9-2 in the all-time series. The teams have officially tied in the last two games, though the Pride out-lasted the top-seeded Tribe in a penalty-kick shootout in the 2012 CAA semifinals on W&M's home field after 110 minutes of scoreless action. Hofstra won the CAA championship the last time the team played at Martin Family Stadium with a double-overtime victory over UNCW in the title game.
William & Mary is off to a 6-1-1 start and has allowed just 10 goals. The Tribe has won five in a row and is unbeaten in the last six games. A balanced scoring attack is led by Samantha Cordum (five goals) who joins Emory Camper and Aly Shaughness (three goals apiece) as well as two-goal scorers Rachel Moore and Haley Kavanaugh.
Hofstra has a RPI of 42 in the first week of rankings, which is the highest of any CAA team. W&M is second at 63.
Game Notes
