Reigning CAA Player of the Year Justin Wright-Foreman heads into senior season as driving force behind a contending Hofstra team. (Photo by Vincent Simone/NYC Buckets)
Hoping to rebound from three seasons of what-if and even further March agony to a program suffering from nearly two decades of such heartbreak, Hofstra took the first step toward rewriting the narrative Thursday afternoon, as the Pride released its non-conference schedule, a 13-game ledger in which head coach Joe Mihalich and senior guard Justin Wright-Foreman -- the reigning Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year -- look to bring championship hardware to Hempstead for the first time since 2001, when the program was still a member of the America East Conference.
The journey begins on November 9, when Mount St. Mary's and new head coach Dan Engelstad is the first opponent to enter the David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex, and continues two days later with a trip to Marshall. All told, those two games are the first of four contests in eight days for Hofstra, who will soldier on by welcoming North Carolina A&T to Long Island on November 14 before visiting the University of Maryland two days after that. A slight break ensues before Cal State Fullerton comes to Hempstead on November 21, the Pride's final home game before the Thanksgiving holiday, which is followed by a trek to Richmond and former CAA rival VCU on November 24.
Hofstra renews its series with Siena this season, and the Saints are the first of four Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference opponents on the docket, with new head coach Jamion Christian leading the former mid-major power into battle on November 28. A return game at Kennesaw State opens December, doing so on the first day of the month before a trio of MAAC opponents await the Pride.
Monmouth (December 5) and Rider (December 8) both make the drive across the Hudson River before Manhattan welcomes Hofstra to Draddy Gymnasium on December 10 in a meeting where the Pride will be looking to defeat Jaspers head coach Steve Masiello for the first time as the former Bobby Gonzalez and Rick Pitino assistant enters his eighth campaign on the sidelines in Riverdale. Hofstra's non-conference schedule concludes with a December 19 visit to Long Island rival Stony Brook, the penultimate tuneup for CAA play and precursor to a December 22 tilt against Division III Rosemont College.
Hofstra Non-Conference Schedule
Friday, November 9: vs. Mount St. Mary's, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, November 11: at Marshall, 2 p.m.
Wednesday, November 14: vs. North Carolina A&T, 7 p.m.
Friday, November 16: at Maryland, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, November 21: vs. Cal State Fullerton, 7 p.m.
Saturday, November 24: at VCU, TBA
Wednesday, November 28: vs. Siena, 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 1: at Kennesaw State, 2 p.m.
Wednesday, December 5: vs. Monmouth, 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 8: vs. Rider, 4 p.m.
Monday, December 10: at Manhattan, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, December 19: at Stony Brook, 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 22: vs. Rosemont, 4 p.m.
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