Hofstra Tops Ohio State, 1-0

Pride knock off Buckeyes in first round of NCAA Tournament

Nov. 16, 2007

From Hofstra Athletics

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (www.hofstra.edu/Athletics) - Junior midfielder Edel Malone (Ennis, Ireland) scored the game's only goal and junior goalkeeper Krystal Robens (East Taunton, MA) set school records with her seventh straight shutout and her 12th shutout of the season as Hofstra captured a 1-0 win over Ohio State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in sub-freezing temperatures on Friday night at Penn State University's Jeffrey Field.

With the win, the Pride improves to 18-3 on the year, extending its school record for wins in a season, and moves on to face top-seeded Penn State on Sunday at 1 p.m. It also picks up its first-ever NCAA Tournament win after dropping a 3-0 decision to West Virginia in 2005 in its only other appearance. Ohio State sees its season end at 12-10-1 with the loss.  

Hofstra got on the board 7:38 into the second half. Freshman forward Kayla Pifer (State College, PA), who was making a homecoming to the town she grew up in, turned the corner on the left sideline. She sent a low cross through the middle, where Malone was waiting at the far post. Malone knocked a 10-yard shot into the back of the net for her eighth goal of the year.

The Pride nearly doubled its lead three minutes later, but ended up missing by inches twice. Sophomore defender Jess Crankshaw (Lanoka Harbor, NJ) took a 20-yard shot that Ohio State goalkeeper Lauren Robertson tipped off the crossbar. The ball bounced down in the goalmouth, and senior forward Brooke DeRosa (Ronkonkoma, NY) crashed in with an open net. However, Robertson got up off the ground from inside the net and was able to block DeRosa's shot, which spun along the goal line but did not cross over.

However, the Pride did not need the insurance goal as it buckled down defensively, not allowing the Buckeyes a shot on target in the entire second half. Robens did come off her line to pick up a pair of dangerous crosses from the Buckeyes in the final 10 minutes, but that was as close as Ohio State could come to the equalizer.

The opening half saw few scoring chances, although the Pride narrowly missed on one golden opportunity. Pifer turned the corner up the left side of the field and got inside the penalty area in the ninth minute. She laid a pass across the top of the six-yard box, where Malone hit a one-timer which went right to Buckeye goalkeeper Lauren Robertson. Robertson blocked the shot and defender Keiana Mitchell was able to clear it out of trouble before the Pride could get to the rebound. However, the Pride scored in the second half on a near-instant replay of that near-miss.

Ohio State's best chance in the opening stanza came when All-America midfielder Lara Dickenmann broke into the box with a burst of speed midway through the half. However, Hofstra All-America defender Sue Weber (Islip, NY) cut off the angle and swept the ball into the corner with a slide tackle before Dickenmann could get a shot off.

Robens finished the game with three saves (none in the second half) to get the shutout, her 12th of the season. She and the Hofstra defense extended its streak without allowing a goal to 637:15, since James Madison scored late in a 2-0 win at Hofstra Soccer Stadium on Oct. 19. The Pride finished with a 17-11 edge in shots, including 11-4 in the second half.   Robertson had five saves for Ohio State.