Hempstead, NY – The Hofstra men's lacrosse team opened its 2023 Colonial Athletic Association schedule with a 12-11 loss at home to Fairfield on a cool Saturday night from Shuart Stadium.
 
The Pride slips to 2-6 overall and 0-1 in league play, and Fairfield improves to 3-5 overall and 1-0 in the CAA.
 
Matt Elder led the Pride against the Stags with five points on one goal and four assists, while Justin Sykes tallied a hat trick, and John Madsen finished with two goals and an assist. Gerard Kane had two goals in the fourth quarter, and Rory Jones had two goals of his own. Mac Gates made 11 stops against Fairfield between the pipes, his sixth game with 10 or more saves this season.
 
The Stags opened the game with two goals inside the first two minutes of the game, but back-to-back Madsen tallies leveled the game at 2-2. Fairfield pulled in front by three with three unanswered goals until Jones found the back of the net at the 1:26 mark, putting the score at 5-3 in favor of the visitors.
 
Sykes brought the Pride to within one 1:25 into the second quarter, but Fairfield went up by three on back-to-back goals at 9:09 and 5:10. Sykes scored his second with 4:20 left in the half, but Fairfield responded with a strike at 1:03 to give the Stags a three-goal advantage going into the break.
 
Trevor Natalie scored his third goal of the season off a pass from Ryan Sheridan to open the scoring in the third quarter, and a third goal from Sykes at 1:22 canceled out a Fairfield goal at 6:02, to make the score 9-7 to the Stags after three quarters. Elder scored a nice unassisted goal 32 seconds into the start of the fourth quarter to bring the Pride to within one, before Fairfield reasserted its two-goal advantage at 12:20. The Stags upped their lead to three with goals at 7:04 and 5:56, after Kane cut the lead to one with a goal at 9:04. The Pride attempted a furious rally down the stretch, with goals by Jones and Kane inside one minute, but they couldn't find the equalizer before time expired.
 
Bryce Ford tallied six points on three goals and three assists, Jack McKenna scored three goals and assisted twice for five points, and Will Consolo scored four goals. Will Snyder got the win with seven saves.
 
Hofstra welcomes CAA preseason favorite Delaware (5-2, 1-0 CAA) to Shuart Stadium on Saturday, March 25. Opening face-off is set for 3 p.m.
 
NOTES:
-Hofstra's all-time record against Fairfield drops to 8-7.
-Chase Patterson went 10-20 on face-offs with seven ground balls, and Benjamin Niesman went 3-6 on face-offs and scooped up three ground balls.
-Fairfield outshot Hofstra, 47-43, and finished with a 31-20 advantage in ground balls.