Brendan Kavanagh’s goal in OT lifts Hofstra into tie for first

Hofstra's Brendan Kavanagh (25) drives against Vermont Jack Knight (2) during the first half of Vermont vs. Hofstra at James M. Shuart Stadium on Thursday Mar. 22, 2016. Credit: Lee S. Weissman
Brendan Kavanagh scored with 14 seconds left in the first overtime period to lift Hofstra to a 10-9 victory over host Massachusetts Saturday in a Colonial Athletic Association men’s lacrosse game.
After Finn Sullivan and Brett Osman combined to force a turnover in Hofstra’s defensive end, Kavanagh came around the side of goalie Sean Sconone and netted the winner.
“Once he found out he had a little bit of a lane, there wasn’t anything really that was going to stop him,” Hofstra coach Seth Tierney said. “He was going to take a hit, he was going to do whatever he had to do for this team.”
With the victory, Hofstra (9-4, 3-1) moved into a three-way tie for first place and secured a spot in the CAA Tournament. Massachusetts (4-8, 0-4), which evened the score at 9 off a goal from Buddy Carr with 23 seconds remaining in regulation, was eliminated from contention.
“They were fighting for their lives in the CAA, which makes them really dangerous, and we were fighting to punch a ticket to get into the CAA Tournament,” Tierney said. “And it came down to one possession in overtime.”
Kavanagh fed Zachary Franco for the goal to pull the Pride even at 8-8 with 6:38 remaining in the fourth quarter. Kavanagh then set up Sam Llinares for the goal with 3:30 left in regulation, giving Hofstra a 9-8 advantage.
The goal was the 100th in the career of Llinares, who had two goals and an assist. The senior attack from Hauppauge became the ninth player in program history to reach the milestone.
“For him to get goal 100 in four years, I’m just so proud of him,” Tierney said. “He lays it out on the line every time.”
Dylan Alderman had two goals and an assist, and Josh Byrne added two goals. Jack Concannon made 12 saves.
Brendan Hegarty had three goals for Massachusetts, which scored twice in the opening 14 seconds. Alderman scored two goals late in the first to help give the Pride a 4-3 advantage after the first.
“We fought back,” Tierney said, “and we are proud of the resiliency.” — Mike Gavin