Sparkill, N.Y. - In what became a defensive slugfest, the Adelphi University field hockey team dropped its road game at St. Thomas Aquinas College on Wednesday afternoon, following an overtime goal from Nicola Van Vurren, by a final score of 1-0.

The low-scoring affair began with a lot of offensive chances for the Spartans, tallying seven shots in the first quarter, with Amanda Montiel saving five. After Emiline Biggin's shot following a penalty corner, the Brown and Gold were unable to get another shot off in the initial 15 minutes.

Offense progressively became more of a threat in period two. Following Ali Nagy's second penalty corner of the frame, Kelly Johnson was granted a penalty stroke. Despite having good speed on the ball, STAC's Madeline Schaffer made the crucial save off the right pad to preserve the deadlock at 0-0.

The 'Cats held the Maroon and Gold shotless in the second quarter and preserved the tie heading into the break.

Second-half play kept up with the rest of the game's pace, with two shots from Adelphi and STAC again being held shotless in the third quarter.

The final frame saw five penalty corners for the Panthers in a span of 1:16, only the last of which resulted in a shot on goal that Schaffer saved. Although the visitors registered three shots before overtime, it was the home team who put the pressure on going into overtime, tabbing two more shots on goal in the final five minutes of play.

Ball control in the overtime period was dominated by the Spartans, earning four penalty corners and only letting the ball cross midfield once. After the final penalty corner was inserted, Van Vurren fired a ball from the top of the scoring circle through the defense to end the game 1-0. Montiel set a new season-high with 10 saves.

Head Coach Jess Mulhern and Adelphi will return home this weekend, taking on Assumption University on Saturday (Oct. 7) in their HEADstrong game. Game time is set for 3 p.m.