Riverdale, NY - Kristen Redding had a career day with eight points (4 goals, 4 assists) and Nikki Mennella made a splash in her season debut with seven points (4 goals, 3 assists) to lead the Hofstra women's lacrosse team to an 18-5 win over Manhattan on Friday afternoon at Gaelic Park. 

The win was the 95th in the head coaching career of Pride leader Shannon Smith. She is now the program's all-time leader in career wins. Carie Bodo previously held the program record for wins as she totaled 94 from 1988 to 2001. 

The game was knotted at two early on before Kayleigh Bender gave the Pride the lead for good with her first of the game at the 13:27 mark of the second quarter. With Hofstra leading 4-3, the Pride scored the final six goals of the second stanza to take a commanding 10-3 lead into the halftime break. Mennella keyed the run with two goals and two assists during the 6-0 spurt. 

Hofstra left no doubt in the third quarter, scoring the first two goals of the quarter and outscoring Manhattan, 6-1, in the period to lead 15-4 after 45 minutes. The final 15 minutes would see the Pride score three more times, including a pair of goals from Angelina Sparacio. 


Bender finished with four points on three goals and an assist for the Pride. It was another outstanding game for Christine Dannenfelser as she totaled three ground balls, three caused turnovers, and four draw controls in the contest. Mennella tied Natalie DeMeo for team-high honors with six draw controls. 

Luchianna Cardello earned the win in net with four saves for the Pride. 

Olivia Cruthers had three points (2 goals, 1 assist) for Manhattan, while Emily Fiola tallied two goals and Lauren Maher added a goal and an assist. Danielle Serbinski had seven saves for the Jaspers. 

Hofstra returns home for its next game as the Pride will host Marist on Sunday at 12 p.m. at James M. Shuart Stadium. For ticket information visit HofstraTickets.com. The game will air on FloCollege. 

NOTES
- Today was the third all-time meeting between Hofstra and Manhattan. The Pride now leads the all-time series, 3-0. This was the first meeting since 1998. 
- Redding previously tallied a career-high four points on multiple occasions, most recently in the Pride's season opener against Long Island last week. The goal total tied her career-high (also most recently achieved against LIU) and the assist total was a new career-high. 
- The hat trick was the 11th of Mennella's career (and first of the season), Redding's second this season and fifth of her career, and Bender's second in as many games during her rookie campaign. 
- Hofstra won 18 draw controls in the contest. It marked the Pride's most in a contest since winning 23 against Monmouth on April 1, 2023.