St. John’s Rallies Late to Defeat Hofstra, 9-8

Saturday, February 21

Farmingdale, N.Y. (Rams Field)

2 p.m.

St. John's University

Hofstra

2/21/2026 5:48:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse

Late three-goal surge lifts the Red Storm past the Pride

QUEENS, N.Y. – The St. John's men's lacrosse team earned a thrilling 9-8 victory over Hofstra on Saturday afternoon in Farmingdale.

A late fourth-quarter surge powered the Red Storm, as the Johnnies scored three goals over the final two minutes to secure the win and improve to 2-2 on the season.
Jake Wright and Brody Hergott paced the St. John's offense with two goals apiece, with Hergott netting the game-winner with 1:56 remaining. Adrian Nowak and Noah Plenn also found the back of the net, with Nowak extending his point streak to 19 games and his goal streak to nine.

Defensively, Matt Nelson anchored the Red Storm effort, recording 10 saves, including two crucial stops in the closing minutes to preserve the victory.

St. John's opened the contest with a strong defensive stand before striking first at the 13:14 mark, as Wright buried the opening goal to give the Red Storm an early advantage. After several scoreless possessions, Hofstra evened the game at 1-1 with 9:42 remaining in the quarter. The Red Storm answered immediately, as Hergott delivered a momentum-swinging tally, ripping a perfectly placed bouncing shot past the goalkeeper to restore the lead at 2-1. Both teams tightened defensively over the final minutes, with Nelson and Shea Kennedy making key saves to keep the deficit at one, but St. John's held firm, including a critical defensive stand following a Pride timeout with 1:04 left, to carry a 2-1 lead into the second quarter.

The defensive intensity carried into the second quarter, as both teams traded possessions and received strong play from their goalkeepers, keeping the score at 2-1 through the opening minutes. After more than five scoreless minutes, highlighted by two caused turnovers on Hofstra clear attempts, Mitch Campbell broke through with 9:25 remaining, finishing to give St. John's a 3-1 advantage. The Pride answered just over a minute later to cut the deficit back to one, and following a one-minute non-releasable penalty against the Red Storm, Hofstra capitalized to even the score at 3-3 with 7:12 to play, earning an additional man-up opportunity on the ensuing possession.

St. John's responded with composure, successfully killing off the penalty before Quinn Falasca delivered a momentum-swinging play, going coast-to-coast to restore a 4-3 lead. Moments later, the Red Storm struck again, as Plenn created a turnover in front of the cage and buried the finish to extend the advantage to 5-3. Hofstra's defense held firm following a late timeout, but St. John's maintained control, carrying a two-goal lead into halftime.

The Johnnies wasted no time opening the second half, as Ethan Wiegand controlled the faceoff and went straight to goal, ripping a shot into the top corner just seven seconds into the quarter to extend the Red Storm lead to three. Both defenses settled in over the next four minutes, with Matt Nelson coming up with a key save at the 10:48 mark to preserve the advantage. Hofstra broke through with 7:23 remaining to cut the deficit to two and capitalized on a St. John's turnover in the offensive end to pull within one at 3:54. The Pride continued to surge, finding the equalizer just 48 seconds later to even the score. Nelson responded with a critical stop in the closing minutes to keep the game level, and despite a late opportunity for the Red Storm, the score remained tied at 6-6 heading into the final quarter.

In the final quarter, Nelson came up with a point-blank save to open play, keeping the game level. After withstanding early pressure from the Red Storm, Hofstra took its first lead of the contest with a long-range goal at the 11:14 mark, making it 7-6. Both defenses held firm over the next several minutes before the Pride extended their advantage to two on a bouncing shot that found the back of the net. St. John's looked to respond, but an impressive save by Hofstra's Shea Kennedy on a close-range attempt from Owen Rogers kept the deficit at 8-6 with just over six minutes to play.
With time winding down, the Red Storm continued to push, as a shot from Huggard rang off the post before St. John's earned a one-minute man-up opportunity at the 4:46 mark. Capitalizing on the advantage, the Johnnies pulled within one with 3:56 remaining. Just over a minute later, Adrian Nowak evened the score, finishing in tight to tie the game. The momentum continued to swing in favor of St. John's, as Hergott fired home the go-ahead goal with 1:56 left to give the Red Storm a 9-8 lead. Hofstra earned a late man-up opportunity with 23 seconds remaining, but the St. John's defense stood tall down the stretch, holding off the Pride to secure the 9-8 victory.

Following Saturday's victory over the Pride, St. John's will be back in action on Feb. 28 when they travel to Easton, Pa. to take on Lafayette. Face-off is set for 4 p.m.