The picturesque undefeated season of the top-seeded men's lacrosse team was abruptly de-railed last weekend.
In their first game of 2008 outside of Baltimore's city limits, the Jays came back to town befuddled, suffering an unexpected loss at the hands of the unranked Hofstra Pride in overtime by a score of 7-8.
"I would certainly consider it an upset, for the experience, with the youth of our team," Hofstra head coach Seth Tierney said.
While this event doesn't quite reach the magnitude of the Appalachian State Mountaineers' upset of the Michigan Wolverines in the 2007 college football season, the occurrence still carried historical significance.
It was the first time that Hofstra knocked off a number-one ranked opponent. But despite that, Tierney downplayed any hype surrounding the recent Blue Jay loss, citing that both lacrosse programs compete in the exact same division and maintain a high level of play.
Tierney was an associate head coach at Hopkins for two years, working in a six-year stint on the sidelines of Homewood Field under head coach Dave Pietramala. He was also on the staff during the 2005 championship season, but all that's ancient history to him.
"That chapter is done. I'm at Hofstra now," he said.
Tierney's squad came out firing on Saturday, putting Hopkins in a three-point deficit at the end of the first quarter.
"We got off to a slow start," Hopkins assistant coach Bobby Benson said. "We cannot afford to come out like that against a good team like Hofstra."
After a strong defensive showing in the next quarter from both sides, highlighted with four saves by Hopkins sophomore goalie Michael Gvozden, the 6-3 score endured into the second half of the game.
In the third quarter, the anemic Blue Jay offense finally broke out with three consecutive goals in a total span of 10 minutes. Senior attack Michael Doneger rounded out the long charge by swiftly potting an extra-man goal with an assist by sophomore midfielder Michael Kimmel.
"When we tied the game at six, we thought we had weathered the storm so-to-speak, and gave ourselves an opportunity to get back into the game," Doneger said.
But the sigh of relief from Hopkins was short-lived as the Pride responded with a goal midway through the last quarter. Hofstra would have held on for the win in regulation, if not for a great shot engineered in the penultimate minute by the Jays' senior midfielder Stephen Peyser, which evened the score for what
would be the last time in the match.
"[We knew] a run was gonna come by them; [Hopkins is] too powerful, too well coached, but we just needed to worry about the next play," Tierney said.
Hofstra handily won the opening face-off in sudden death overtime. The Jays, who never seem phased by tense game situations, suddenly looked overmatched against the Pride.
Hopkins failed an attempt to clear a ball that led to an untimely turnover, and Hofstra freshman attack Jay Card was then given the opportunity to put the ball in the net for the fourth time in the game, sealing the deal for his team.
"[Coach Pietramala and I] shared a few words," Tierney said. I'm sure he wasn't happy with the way his team played."
The loss broke a 12-game winning streak for the Blue Jays that extended from last season. But it wasn't all bad news for the team last week.
Hopkins came from behind for the exciting 10-8 victory against the UMBC Retrievers last Tuesday night. It also took some time for the Jays' offense to warm up in that game. Junior midfielder Austin Walker, who was a big part in keeping the Hofstra game close, lit the fire for Hopkins against the Retrievers, scoring the first goal of game, which was also his first of the season.
"Maybe my goal provided a small spark to get us going, but overall I think it was just a play that [Coach Pietramala] called at the right time," Walker said. "We executed and then built upon it to gain a win."
One certainty is that the guys know how to apply what they learn from both their wins and losses to their play on the lacrosse field. It's what made the team successful for so long. The team was similarly upset in their 2007 season-opener against the University of Albany Great Danes, but went on to win the National Championship.
"[The Hofstra] loss will provide us with a greater sense of urgency going into this week's game," co-captain Doneger said.
The Jays will retake the field this Saturday against the Syracuse Orange at noon at Homewood Field.
