Pride Set for Regular Season Openers
ECRHA October 19th, 2010 at 6:05PM
Coming off one of their better starts in recent memory, the Hofstra University Roller Hockey teams are looking to continue their success as they head north this weekend to take on a handful of conference foes.
Returning to Z-Rink in Glastonbury, CT for their only trip to New England this season, the action starts for the DI team at 10am Saturday morning to take on the University of Rhode Island. URI has had the better of the matchups the past few seasons, but with a revamped lineup that is without either of their goalies from the last few years, scorer Brendan Nelson, and their coaching staff, the Pride will look to take advantage of a talented but inexperienced team. This game will also mark the first time that former Hofstra player Trevor Butterfield will take on his old team, as he enters his first season with the Rams. Look for transfer Richie Schwartz to make his regular season debut for the DI team, and senior goalie André Robitaille to start in his return home.
Immediately following that game, the B team starts their season against Suffolk CC. The B team brings with them one of their most experienced lineups in recent memory, as they look to return to the ECRHA playoffs for the second straight year. With the additions of Schwartz, who had five goals and an assist in the B team's three preseason games, grad student Anthony Famularo, who played his undergrad in the PCRHL with Villanova, and goaltender James Lauto, who won both his starts, including a shutout over Buffalo in the preseason, the team is looking to capitalize on a Suffolk team that has 5 new players and a rookie goalie in the lineup.
The B team is back at it again at 5:00 that afternoon to conclude their weekend, as they take on Stony Brook for the second time this season. Last game, the Pride won big, scoring 10 goals as they doubled up the Seawolves. Schwartz had a hat trick, Rob Scofield added two goals and two assists, Mike Petro had 4 points, Brandon Borresen scored a pair of goals, and Matt Boyle scored his first goal since 2007 in his return to Hofstra. Stony Brook is expected to drop down a few of their DI players for this game, just as they did last season, in a poorly veiled effort to get their team enough points to make the playoffs early in the year. Regardless, the Pride boast a much more experienced team, including four players who made the trip with the DI team to the NCRHA national championships in San Jose, CA this past spring, and got significant game experience at the DI level.
The DI team finishes out the night as they take on Suffolk at 11pm. Hofstra will be at full strength as they take on their Long Island rivals on the other side of the Sound. Sophomore Devin Gee has led the team so far in scoring, putting in 5 goals, including 3 on the power play, in four preseason games. Jared Occhicone looks to start off his season right after winning the silver medal as a part of Team USA at the World Junior Championships this past summer in Dusseldorf, Germany.
The only game Sunday has the DI team take on the hometown UConn Huskies at noon. Thier third conference game of the weekend, the Pride need a strong finish against UConn to help position themselves for later in the season. Hofstra and UConn are expected to challenge for the top conference spot, so while it's rare that an early season game has much meaning, this one may for sure.
As always, you can follow all the action on www.hofstrahockey.org, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hofstrarollerhockey, and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/hofstrahockey
Returning to Z-Rink in Glastonbury, CT for their only trip to New England this season, the action starts for the DI team at 10am Saturday morning to take on the University of Rhode Island. URI has had the better of the matchups the past few seasons, but with a revamped lineup that is without either of their goalies from the last few years, scorer Brendan Nelson, and their coaching staff, the Pride will look to take advantage of a talented but inexperienced team. This game will also mark the first time that former Hofstra player Trevor Butterfield will take on his old team, as he enters his first season with the Rams. Look for transfer Richie Schwartz to make his regular season debut for the DI team, and senior goalie André Robitaille to start in his return home.
Immediately following that game, the B team starts their season against Suffolk CC. The B team brings with them one of their most experienced lineups in recent memory, as they look to return to the ECRHA playoffs for the second straight year. With the additions of Schwartz, who had five goals and an assist in the B team's three preseason games, grad student Anthony Famularo, who played his undergrad in the PCRHL with Villanova, and goaltender James Lauto, who won both his starts, including a shutout over Buffalo in the preseason, the team is looking to capitalize on a Suffolk team that has 5 new players and a rookie goalie in the lineup.
The B team is back at it again at 5:00 that afternoon to conclude their weekend, as they take on Stony Brook for the second time this season. Last game, the Pride won big, scoring 10 goals as they doubled up the Seawolves. Schwartz had a hat trick, Rob Scofield added two goals and two assists, Mike Petro had 4 points, Brandon Borresen scored a pair of goals, and Matt Boyle scored his first goal since 2007 in his return to Hofstra. Stony Brook is expected to drop down a few of their DI players for this game, just as they did last season, in a poorly veiled effort to get their team enough points to make the playoffs early in the year. Regardless, the Pride boast a much more experienced team, including four players who made the trip with the DI team to the NCRHA national championships in San Jose, CA this past spring, and got significant game experience at the DI level.
The DI team finishes out the night as they take on Suffolk at 11pm. Hofstra will be at full strength as they take on their Long Island rivals on the other side of the Sound. Sophomore Devin Gee has led the team so far in scoring, putting in 5 goals, including 3 on the power play, in four preseason games. Jared Occhicone looks to start off his season right after winning the silver medal as a part of Team USA at the World Junior Championships this past summer in Dusseldorf, Germany.
The only game Sunday has the DI team take on the hometown UConn Huskies at noon. Thier third conference game of the weekend, the Pride need a strong finish against UConn to help position themselves for later in the season. Hofstra and UConn are expected to challenge for the top conference spot, so while it's rare that an early season game has much meaning, this one may for sure.
As always, you can follow all the action on www.hofstrahockey.org, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hofstrarollerhockey, and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/hofstrahockey