GAME INFORMATION:
Date: Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020 | 1:00 p.m.
Location: James M. Shuart Stadium (Hempstead, N.Y.)
Live Stats: www.HofstraStats.com
Live Video: Pride Productions
THE OPENING FACE-OFF:
- LIU and Hofstra are set to meet for the first time in 30 years on Saturday. The Pride and Sharks last met on May 5, 1990 when Hofstra earned a 14-5 win at Hickox Field.
- Hofstra leads the all-time series, 15-8. Despite dropping the first eight meetings, LIU won three consecutive matchups from 1985-1987.
- The Sharks are coming off of their best offensive performance of the season, scoring 15 goals against St. John's last Saturday. LIU recorded 25 points in the loss, led by a team-high five points from Richie LaCalandra and Jake Gillis.
- Hofstra enters the week receiving votes in both the USILA coaches poll and the Inside Lacrosse media poll. The Pride have garnered votes in the media poll in each of the first four polls this year and tallied a season-best seven votes in the USILA poll this week.
- The Pride are coming off two consecutive losses, falling to Villanova University at home by a 10-8 margin before dropping a Long Island rivalry matchup with Stony Brook University, 14-11 at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium on Tuesday.
HOFSTRA NOTES:
- Hofstra scored 21 goals against Wagner College in its season-opener, the most by a Pride team since 2006 against Robert Morris University. The 21 goals were the third-most in Colonial Athletic Association history, and are the most goals in a season-opener since Hofstra defeated MIT, 25-2 in 1958.
- Senior attackman Ryan Tierney, son of head coach Seth Tierney, is proving to be one of the top players in the nation this season. Tierney was named the CAA Preseason Player of the Year by Inside Lacrosse and was named a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award last week. Tierney leads the Pride with 13 goals this season, ranking 15th in the country.
- Tierney was also named the US Lacrosse National Player of the Week on Feb. 17 after scoring four goals and adding four assists in a win against the University of Michigan.
- Hofstra's defensive midfielders have helped make the Pride one of the best clearing units in the country in 2020. The Pride currently lead the nation with a .935 clearing percentage, while also holding opponents to just 75.3-percent on clear attempts, a mark that ranks sixth in the country.
- At the faceoff X, Brian Herber ranks in the top-25 in faceoff percentage (.582), while also ranking 13th with eight ground balls per game.
SHARK BITES:
- Will Snelders and Richie LaCalandra lead the Northeast Conference in assists per game, tallying 2.67 and 2.00 helpers, respectively.
- Will Snelders has recorded a point in all 35 career games, a mark that stands as the 12th-longest mark among Division I players. During his sophomore campaign, Snelders tallied at least three points in every contest and ranked 15th in the nation with 4.69 points per game.
- Additionally, Snelders scored his 120th career goal last weekend against St. John's University. Snelders now sits 30 away from an LIU program record held by Matty Beccaris '16.
- The Sharks are outscoring opponents by a 14-3 margin during the fourth quarter this season.
- Through the first four weeks of the season, freshman goalie Will Mark ranks eighth in the nation with 15.0 saves per game. Mark made 18 saves in his collegiate debut against Siena, and has posted double-digit save numbers in each of his first three games.
- The Sharks return over 90-percent of their scoring from 2019 to this season's squad. Seven point scorers left the program after 2019, with the highest point scorer coming in the form of Connor Farrell who tallied 14 points as a senior. The Sharks' top eight goal scorers return to the lineup (Snelders, Jake Gillis, Mike Kadnar, Alex Russell, Thomas Liantonio, Nick Grassa, Dan Foley, Dylan Villari) in 2020. That group combined for 204 goals and 301 total points last season, giving LIU one of the deepest attacks in the NEC this season.
- A win on Saturday would be the 22nd of head coach Eric Wolf's career and first at the Division I level. Wolf has compiled a 21-13 (.618) record, including two-consecutive seasons with 10 or more wins.
