Hofstra Pride

Hofstra Pride
University Hofstra University
Conference Colonial Athletic Association
EIWA (Wrestling)
NCAA Division I
Athletic director Jeff Hathaway
Location Hempstead, New York
Varsity teams 17
Basketball arena Hofstra Arena
Baseball stadium University Field (Hofstra)
Other arenas Mack Sports Complex (5,000+)
Nickname Pride
Fight song March On, Hofstra
Colors Blue, White, and Gold[1]
              
Website www.gohofstra.com
Colonial Athletic Association logo in Hofstra's colors

The Hofstra Pride (formerly the Hofstra Flying Dutchmen) are composed of 17 teams representing Hofstra University in intercollegiate athletics, including men and women's basketball, cross country, golf, lacrosse, soccer, and tennis. Men's sports include baseball and wrestling. Women's sports include volleyball, field hockey, and softball. The Pride compete in the NCAA Division I and have been members of the Colonial Athletic Association in most sports since 2001.[2] They were previously members of the American East Conference.

Teams

Men's Women's
Baseball Basketball
Basketball Cross Country
Cross Country Field Hockey
Golf Golf
Lacrosse Lacrosse
Soccer Soccer
Tennis Softball
Wrestling (EIWA) Tennis
Volleyball

Basketball

The men's basketball team experienced its most successful period in 2000 and 2001, winning back-to-back America East Men's Basketball Tournament titles and making their first appearances in the Division I championship for the first time since the 1970s.

Wrestling

The Hofstra University Pride Wrestling team competes in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association in the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.

In 1977, Hofstra wrestler Nick Gallo won the NCAA National Championship in the 126 lb weight class and was a member of the 1976 and 1980 U.S. Olympic Freestyle Wrestling teams, he was also given the title "Most Outstanding Wrestler" in the 1977 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.[3]

Dennis Papadatos, who became the 12th Head Wrestling Coach in Hofstra history on April 4, 2014, is in his 1st season as the head wrestling coach of the Pride in 2014-15.[4] The Pride wrestling team competes on campus in the Mack Sports Complex. Former Pride wrestler Chris Weidman was a 2-time NCAA Division I All-American (6th in 2006 & 3rd in 2007, both at 197 lb) and is now the current UFC Middleweight Champion.

Hofstra's wrestling team was formerly a member of the CAA like all other Pride teams until the CAA ended sponsorship of wrestling in 2013.

Discontinued sports

Football

The school fielded a football team from 1937 to 2009, when the sport was cancelled due to costs and declining attendance.[5] The team was an associate member of the Atlantic 10 Conference from 2001 until 2009. Funds previously used for the football program went into the creation of the medical school, and enhancing a variety of programs, including hard sciences and engineering.[6]

Conference history

Two of Bill Cosby's early comedy albums include routines about a game between the now-defunct Hofstra football team and Temple University.[7] The routines are "TV Football" (from I Started Out as a Child) and its expanded re-telling "Hofstra" (from Why Is There Air?).

An entire episode of Everybody Loves Raymond was devoted to a main character, Frank Barone, catching a record-setting field-goal ball kicked by a Hofstra player at a game Ray Barone predicted to be a "tickle fight." Hofstra Athletics have been commended for its performance the 2014-2015 year.

See also

References

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