Hofstra focused on reaching NCAAs

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Hofstra’s men’s soccer team is aiming for a return to the NCAA Tournament in 2017 after a near miss last fall

Hofstra captured the Colonial Athletic Association regular-season title for a second straight year before falling in the league semifinals 2-0 to William & Mary. The Pride, which won the 2015 CAA Tournament, tackled a grueling non-conference schedule during last year’s 9-8-1 campaign and just missed out on an at-large invite to the 48-team NCAA tourney field.

“The fuel is still on the fire from last year,” said Hofstra’s 29th-year head coach Richard Nuttall, who guided the Pride to the second round of the 2015 NCAA Tournament. “We felt we should have been more strongly considered for an at-large bid.”

In hopes of positioning Hofstra for another crack at the NCAAs, Nuttall has pieced together another challenging schedule this season, which he said may be the toughest in program history. Hofstra kicked off with a 1-0 win at Penn State on Aug. 25 before matches at sixth-ranked Maryland, 13th-ranked Virginia and local rival St. John’s as part of a four-game road trip to open the season. The Pride will later face non-conference tests against Connecticut, Stony Brook and Columbia, all teams that finished in the top 60 of last year’s NCAA RPI rankings.

“As a program you can only get better when you schedule these tough teams,” said Nuttall, who has won four CAA titles including a three-peat from 2004 to 2006. “We’re striving for excellence.”

Reigning CAA Rookie of the Year Luke Brown will become centerpiece of Hofstra’s offensive attack following the graduation of striker Joseph Holland, who was drafted in the first round of the Major League Soccer draft by the Houston Dynamo. The England native tallied eight goals and 18 points in 1,100 minutes logged as a freshman. Nuttall said after Brown worked hard in the offseason to build up strength and endurance he hopes for more strides this fall.

“He wants to do all the small things to get better,” Nuttall said of his sophomore forward. “He’s going to be a marked man so it’s not going to be easy.”

Seniors Meshack Eshun, Addy and Danny Elliott anchor the midfield after strong 2016 seasons with both registering six goals to earn All-CAA First Team and Second Team accolades, respectively. The midfield has added depth from senior Mani Walcott, a reigning All-CAA Third-Team selection and Adam Savill, who earned a spot on the conference’s All-Rookie Team.

Hofstra graduated three starting defenders from a season ago and is relying heavily on the backline’s lone returning starter, Sean Nealis, to lead the defense. Nuttall has been pleased with the development of senior defenseman Nick Bigilin, a Kellenberg product who transferred to Hofstra from Kentucky last year. The Pride also got a boost on defense with the addition of St. John’s transfer, Marcus Lindqvist, who started 16 games for the Red Storm.

The defense will look to protect junior goalie Alex Ashton, who returns for his second season as starting net-minder and registered five sales in the Pride’s season opening win at Penn State. Senior Thomas Germano, a local product from Rockville Centre’s South Side High School is also competing for time in net along with junior Leonard Arkhanhelskyi. 

Among Hofstra’s talented freshman class is three Chaminade High School products in Rockville Centre native Andrea Codispoti, Matthew Vowinkel and Jack Nuttall. Vowinkel scored 86 career goals at Chaminade High to earn All-American honors while Codispoti received all-state accolades as a senior. Nuttall, the son of Hofstra’s head coach, recorded 22 assists as a high school senior.

Hofstra is next in action at St. John’s on Sept. 5 before hosting Long Island rival Stony Brook in the Pride’s home opener on Sept. 9 at 7:30 p.m. Hofstra hosts Elon in the CAA opener on Sept. 16 at 7 p.m. and Columbia three days later for a Tuesday night game.

Hofstra was picked to finish second in the CAA preseason poll with William & Mary picked to win the league. Nuttall is also expecting strong completion to attain the league’s automatic NCAA Tournament bid from UNC-Wilmington, Elon and Delaware.

“Our conference is always underestimated,” Nuttall said. “There are four or five teams that can win it.”