Yapor's 2 goals, 3 assists lead Hofstra

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. -- Lance Yapor had barely appeared in a box score for Hofstra before yesterday's game. The freshman attack played in just two of the Pride's 12 games this season and took only one shot but his recent practice performances made the coaching staff want to give him an opportunity.

Yapor showcased his talents before a national TV audience as he had two goals and three assists, Jay Card had four goals and an assist and Adrian Sorichetti had three goals and an assist to lead No. 8 Hofstra past No. 15 UMass, 14-5, in the first game of the second annual ESPNU Warrior Classic at Rentschler Field.

"It's a great experience for me," Yapor said. "It's always been my dream to play D-I lacrosse. I played loose, got the ball a couple of times and just scored."

Yapor had a knee operation before the season and didn't get into game shape until recently, according to coach Seth Tierney.

"It took him a while to get his stride back, his gait back. He wasn't in great cardio shape and now all of a sudden the last two weeks we were noticing him at practice," Tierney said.

Tierney called on Hofstra alums to address the team in the days leading up to the annual clash with CAA rival UMass.

Three members of the 2006 team which lost to UMass 11-10 in overtime after blowing a five-goal lead in the last five minutes of regulation came to Hofstra and spoke to the team on Thursday and other alums were invited to write messages which were read at Friday's team dinner.

Card said he particularly took to heart what 2006 Pride alum John Orsen said to the team.

"You see the hatred and the regrets in his eyes from that game and I wanted to win that one for him and the rest of the '06 team," said Card, who has scored in 14 consecutive games and became the second-leading scorer in program history (120).

Hofstra (12-1, 4-2 CAA) took a commanding 7-0 lead with 5:14 left in the first half and the nation's best scoring defense put on a clinic, holding UMass scoreless for the first 26:41, the longest scoring drought for the Minutemen since eclipsing 30 minutes without a goal in an April 2008 loss to Syracuse.

UMass scored twice before halftime, including a goal as the horn sounded, to make the score 7-2. Card and Sorichetti each scored a pair of goals in a dominating third quarter for the Pride, which opened the gap to 12-2 after the third.

"What spurred that quarter was what happened at the end of the half," Tierney said. "We went in at halftime disappointed that it wasn't, 7-1. It got us refocused."

UMass (8-4, 3-2) scored three goals to open the fourth quarter and Yapor scored the first goals of his Hofstra career to give the Pride its largest margin of victory, nine, since last year's 18-2 win against Manhattan.

No. 4 Syracuse defeated Rutgers, 12-2, in the second game of the afternoon before an announced crowd of 4,748.