Hempstead, NY – Buoyed by two goals and an assist from senior
Matthew Vowinkel and a four-save effort by freshman
Wessel Speel, the Hofstra men's soccer team came away with a 3-0 win over visiting Drexel Saturday afternoon from Hofstra Soccer Stadium to open Colonial Athletic Association play.
The Pride moves to 2-2 overall on the year and 1-0-0 against CAA competition, while Drexel drops to 2-3 overall and 0-0-1 in the conference.
The Pride got on the board at 26:44 as Vowinkel got on the end of a cross by senior
Storm Strongin from the right side of the pitch. Strongin intercepted the ball from a Drexel player and drove down the right sideline before whipping the ball into the box, where Vowinkel took a touch at the far post and tapped it into the back of the net.
Hofstra added a second goal 37 seconds into the start of the second half. The Hofstra press forced a Drexel turnover deep in their own third. Vowinkel collected the ball and backheeled a pass to
Luca Tausch, and the junior raced down the sideline with the ball before firing a driven pass across the Drexel goal and backline and into the path of freshman
Ryan Carmichael, who would not miss the wide-open opportunity.
Hofstra added the exclamation point on its first conference win of the season through a penalty goal by Vowinkel. Junior
Hendrik Hebbeker collected a loose ball after senior
Jack Nuttall deflected a Drexel pass and eventually maneuvered himself into the penalty area, where he was brought down by a Drexel defender for the penalty. Vowinkel stepped up and sent the opposing goalkeeper the wrong way for his second tally of the afternoon.
Stephen Kopaschilis made three saves in the loss for the Dragons, while Laolu Daranijo led the team with three shots and two shots on goal.
The Pride will travel to Newark, New Jersey this coming Tuesday, March 16, for the final non-conference game of the season against NJIT. Kick-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.
NOTES:
-Hofstra moves to 19-22-10 all-time against Drexel.
-This marks the fifth multi-goal game of
Matthew Vowinkel's Hofstra career, and his first multi-goal game since scoring three against Northeastern in November 2019.
-Hofstra outshot Drexel, 10-6, and 6-4 in shots on goal.
-The Pride earned seven corner kicks, and allowed zero for Drexel.
