Hempstead, NY – Senior attackman Ryan Tierney collected his third hat trick in as many games, but the Hofstra University men's lacrosse team dropped a challenging decision to the Villanova Wildcats on Saturday afternoon at James M. Shuart Stadium.
 
Hofstra dropped to 2-1 on the season while Villanova improved to 2-2 on the year.
 
Ten Hofstra players all recorded at least one point, led by who Tierney tied for a game-high three goals while leading six other Hofstra scorers. Sterlyn Ardrey, Brian Herber, Dominic Pryor, James Philbin, and Dan DeSanti all had one goal each, wihle Eric Wenz, Liam Muldoon, Justin Sykes, and Sam Lufti all had assists.
 
As a team, Hofstra edged out Villanova in several statistical categories, including shots (46-41), ground balls (30-29), faceoffs (11-10), and turnovers (11-15). The Pride were also perfect on clear attempts (19-for-19) and extra-man opportunities (1-for-1).
 
Hofstra wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, as Herber won the game-opening faceoff and sprinted toward the net, putting Hofstra on the scoreboard just 14 seconds into the contest. Just over a minute and a half later, Villanova's Patrick Daly sparked a 4-0 Wildcat run to jump ahead of Hofstra by three with 10:24 remaining in the first quarter. Tierney cut into the Wildcat advantage with a man-up goal assisted by Lufti with 5:42 remaining in the first.
 
Villanova opened up scoring in the second quarter, but Hofstra answered with Philbin's third goal of the season before Pryor added his first as Hofstra slashed the Villanova lead to one, 5-4. The visitors added one more goal with 3:03 in the half to set the score, 6-4 at halftime.
 
The contest remained neck-and-neck throughout the third quarter, as both teams tallied three goals during the third frame. Tierney scored his second of the day to shrink Hofstra's deficit to one goal, but Villanova answered with the next two to make it a three-goal contest. The Pride netted two of the quarter's next three goals, including DeSanti's first of the season assisted by Wenz and Ardrey's second to make it a 9-7 game with one quarter to go.
 
Villanova added an insurance tally at the 9:30 mark before Tierney collected his Colonial Athletic Association leading 10th goal of the season with 3:20 to go, but Hofstra ran out of time and suffered the two-goal setback.
 
In between the pipes, Bobby Casey made a season-high nine saves, including five in the third quarter. Villanova goalkeeper Will Vitton made 13 stops.
 
After just two days' rest, Hofstra will return to action on Tuesday, February 25 at Stony Brook. Faceoff for the 11th edition of the Long Island Rivalry presented by The Greene Turtle will take place at 6:30 p.m. at Kenneth P. Lavalle Stadium.
 
Notes:
-Saturday's game marked the 16th all-time meeting between Hofstra and Villanova. The series is now tied, 8-8
-Tierney recorded his 23rd career hat trick and posted his 17th-straight game with at least one goal
-Hofstra out-shot its opponent for the third-straight game