Hofstra’s John Madsen scores in 2OT to top Stony Brook

Something akin to a sheepish grin and a smirk slowly creased John Madsen’s face.

The senior attacker had, a few minutes earlier, used a quick sidewinding shot with one minute, 59 seconds remaining in double overtime to give Hofstra a 13-12 victory over Stony Brook on Saturday night at James M. Shuart Stadium.

And as the postgame interview session came to an end, he was asked a simple question: Was that a shot he regularly works on or did he decide to use it in the heat of the moment?

“Definitely sidearm, underhand, a lot of the stuff I do feels natural to me,” Madsen said. “But I’m always working on overhand, too. It’s not to be slept on. [Assistant coach Mike Gongas] has us change all of our levels, so always practice that, too.”

Variety is good. So, too, is reliability.

But few things are more desirable for a coach than a player who wants to be great.

Need proof? Just ask Hofstra head coach Seth Tierney about Madsen.

“John’s an unbelievable competitor,” Tierney said. “I ride him pretty hard at times because I want more out of him and he’s a guy that can take it, right?”

Madsen, a Locust Valley High School graduate, delivered for the Pride in the 15th all-time meeting between the Nassau and Suffolk County programs. Hofstra improved to 9-6 against the Seawolves.

The matchup also served as the start of Coastal Athletic Association play for both, as well as an opportunity for the programs to implement the lessons learned in losses No. 6 North Carolina and Binghamton, respectively, seven days prior.

What was revealed over the course of 66 minutes was that both the Pride (5-2, 1-0) and the Seawolves (4-4, 0-1) could take a punch as well as deliver one.

Hofstra and Stony Brook traded momentum swings as a steady mist fell throughout the contest.

The Pride led 4-2 after the first quarter after Anthony Mollica recorded his third hat trick of the season and sixth of his career. Mollica also assisted on Madsen’s winner.

Madsen recorded the 100th point of his career when he scored his 15th goal of the season 4:55 into the second quarter. The tally gave the Pride a 5-4 lead going into halftime.

“It’s a great milestone,” Madsen said. “Definitely a testament to my teammates.”

Hofstra extended its lead to 6-4 on Trevor Natalie’s second goal 48 seconds into the third quarter.

And that’s when Stony Brook made its push.

Forty-two seconds after Natalie’s goal, Ray O’Brien cut the deficit to 6-5 with his sixth goal of the season. Then just 29 seconds later, Stony Brook’s Carson Boyle tied it at 6.

After the Pride briefly regain the lead, the Seawolves kept attacking. And following goals from Caleb Yeung, Ryan Barker, Kian McCoy and Brendan Marino, the Seawolves had a 10-8 advantage at the end of the third.

“A lot of credit to Stony Brook,” Tierney said. “That is one good lacrosse team. They’re well-coached. They’ve got some great players.”

Hofstra’s Rory Jones and Trey Parkes scored in the fourth quarter to tie it at 10. Yueng gave the Seawolves an 11-10 lead with 5:53 left. But Natalie’s third goal with 4:05 left tied it at 11. McCoy gave Stony Brook a 12-11 lead with 3:19 left. But Drew Bogardus tied it at 12 for Hofstra with 1:30 left to force overtime.

“We just don’t know how to be nervous,” Tierney said. “These guys know that getting crazy and getting tight and white-knuckling your stick is not going to get it done.”