LOS ANGELES, Calif. – A spectacular Hofstra women's soccer season came to a close in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday afternoon as the Pride fell to the South Carolina Gamecocks, 3-0 at Soni McAlister Field on the campus of the University of Southern California.
 
"We gave a very good Gamecock team everything they could handle," said head coach, Simon Riddiough. "I am unbelievably proud of this team. I am humbled to be coaching them. These players have set the stone for the future generations of Hofstra programs. We're going to keep building on it. What this team has managed to accomplish in 4-5 years is something truly special."
 
South Carolina's Samantha Chang found the scoreboard first in the 22nd minute, but Hofstra hung tough through the remainder of the first half as shots were even, 4-4 at the midway point.
 
The Pride was extremely dangerous in the second half and racked up 14 chances to South Carolina's five while rattling off five corner kicks in the 45-minute span. Within the first 15 minutes of the second stanza, Hofstra tallied four solid opportunities including a header by Miri Taylor that was served perfectly into the box by Jordan Littleboy but stopped by a diving Gamecock keeper, Heather Hinz. Minutes later, Littleboy played another perfect ball forward for Shepherd, but Shepherd's header also went inches high.
 
Hofstra's closest chances came in the final 20 minutes when Taylor and Louise Hayden both hit the crossbar about eight minutes apart. In between those two opportunities, South Carolina took a 2-0 lead before converting on the final goal of the match in the 87th minute.
 
The Pride ultimately finished the match with a 18-9 advantage in shots. Hinz made six saves in net for the Gamecocks while Skylar Kuzmich made two stops.
 
Hofstra concluded the 2021 campaign with a 17-4-1 mark and finished with the second-highest win total in program history. South Carolina improved to 13-6-1 overall.
 
NOTES:
-It was the first meeting between the two teams in each program's history. Both teams were receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches poll prior to the match.
-Lucy Porter concluded her illustrious career at Hofstra with 123 career points, a Hofstra program record. Porter also finished second all-time at Hofstra with 48 goals and tied for second all-time with 27 assists. She also finishes ninth in CAA history in points.
-Lucy Shepherd also concluded her fantastic career and scattered her name across the Hofstra record book and is 10th all-time at Hofstra in points (75) and sixth all-time in assists (25)
-Miri Taylor finished with 45 points this season, a Hofstra program record. She also broke the Hofstra career assist record with 31.
-Hofstra, one of the most lethal attacking teams in the nation this season, out-shot opponents in all 22 matches
-Hofstra earned its highest ranking in program history this season, reaching as high as No. 10 in the United Soccer Coaches Top-25 poll