Hempstead, NY – Behind another huge second half push, the No. 25 Hofstra Pride women's soccer team cruised past the Yale Bulldogs in a non-conference contest on a beautiful sunny day at the Hofstra Soccer Stadium, 4-0.
 
The Pride claimed its fourth consecutive win and third shutout in the last four contests, improving to 7-1 on the season. Yale dropped to 0-6 overall. Hofstra has now out-scored opponents, 12-1 in its last four meetings.
 
Hofstra dominated the Bulldogs from start to finish, racking up a season-high 27 shots including 13 in the first half and 14 in the second. Hofstra put 14 of those opportunities on goal, while the Bulldogs managed to only get two looks on the day, both in the first stanza.
 
Senior forward Miri Taylor, who notched her second multi-goal performance of the season, posted two goals and one assist for a season- and team-high five points. Hofstra also got multi-point performances from fifth-year forward Lucy Shepherd and junior defender, Anja Suttner, who contributed with one goal and one assist each. In addition, fifth-years midfielders Jordan Littleboy and Amanda Ebbesson registered one assist, as Ebbesson's was her second-straight match and third overall recording at least one point for Hofstra.
 
The Blue and Gold put the pedal to the metal early as Shepherd took a pass from outside the box by Ebbesson, made a move to put the Yale goalkeeper off balance, and finished with her left foot in the seventh minute. After a pair of chances by Louise Hayden and Ellen Halseth, Yale had its only two chances of the match with back-to-back looks by Tina Teik and Giana Pittaro near the 15-minute mark.
 
Hofstra racked up three more shots on goal by the end of the first frame including two great looks by Jordan Littleboy and the other by Taylor.
The Pride combined for five more opportunities during the first 13 minutes out of the locker room, but Taylor doubled the Hofstra lead in the 60th minute after finishing to the lower left corner of the target with passes from Shepherd and Littleboy. The effort sparked a rally for Hofstra as Suttner blasted home her first goal of the season in the 63rd minute, volleying in a corner kick by Taylor to elevate Hofstra's advantage to 3-0.
 
The scoring decision flipped just over four minutes later, when this time, Suttner delivered a free kick over the head of Taylor who flicked in her team-leading eighth tally of the season to finalize the 4-0 score.
 
Despite not recording a save, goalkeepers Skylar Kuzmich (76:21) and Avery Holden (13:39) combined for a shutout, marking Hofstra's conference-leading fifth of the season.
 
Hofstra's three-game homestand came to a close, and the Pride will now get back on the road to face its fifth Ivy League opponent, Princeton University, on Thursday, September 16. Kick-off is at 7 p.m. at the Sherrerd Field at Class of 1952 Stadium and the match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
 
NOTES:
-Hofstra is now 2-3 in the all-time series against Yale
-The Pride moves to 4-0 against Ivy League opponents this season and has taken down the #1 (Brown), #4 (Yale), #5 (Columbia) and #7 (Penn) teams in the Ivy League preseason poll. Princeton, Hofstra's next opponent, Princeton, was picked third in the preseason rankings.
-Miri Taylor continues to inch her way closer to moving up in Hofstra's record books, as she is now one assist away from tying for second all-time at Hofstra (she has 25), and five points from tying for eighth all-time (has 73).
-Lucy Shepherd is now tied for ninth all-time at Hofstra with 19 assists.
-Hofstra extends its home unbeaten streak to 22 matches. Hofstra has not lost at home since October 4, 2018
-Miri Taylor extends her point streak to eight, as she has recorded at least one point in every single match this season