Sparkill, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas College Field Hockey team celebrated its graduating student-athletes on Wednesday at Spartan Field. After the pregame ceremony, STAC went to work and defeated Mercy College, 3-0.
With the victory, STAC improved to 5-6 overall and 3-3 in the NE10, while Mercy dropped to 4-3 and 3-3.
Prior to the contest, the Spartans honored its graduating class; Brittany Lionarons and Isabella O'Hara with on-field ceremonies, which included the athletes' families, teammates, coaches and college administrators.
Follow the ceremonies, it was Nicola Van Vuuren and Jasmijn Van Drunen scoring the three goals in the game for St. Thomas Aquinas.
STAC outshot Mercy 15-7 on the afternoon, and led 8-5 in corners. Sofia Corominas Cuen recorded both assists on the day. Jessie Hohenstein got the start in the cage and earned the shutout, making four saves for the Spartan's fifth of the season.
After a scoreless first quarter, Nicola Van Vuuren would get the first of two goals on the afternoon, as Sofia Corominas Cuen raced down the far sideline and found Van Vuuren in front with a pass for a backhand shot that eluded Mavericks keeper Lauren Viscione and made its way to the back of the net to make it 1-0 with just over eight minutes to play before halftime.
That one-goal margin would hold up into the break. Then in the third quarter, following a Jasmijn Van Drunen penalty corner, Sofia Corominas Cuen would once again find herself with the ball, which she would send toward the cage with Van Drunen poking it home to double the Spartans advantage at 2-0 with four minutes left in the stanza.
The final goal came in the fourth quarter, with Nicola Van Vuuren putting her own rebound on an initial shot past Lauren Viscione in the 54th minute to give STAC a commanding 3-0 lead.
STAC Highlights and Game Notes
- Nicola Van Vuuren's two goals in the match give her a team-leading six on the season.
- Jasmijn Van Drunen's tally is her fourth of the year.
- Jessie Hohenstein (W, 4-4) picked up her fourth shutout of the season and her fifth career clean sheet as a member of the St. Thomas Aquinas College Field Hockey team.
- STAC's 15 total shots in the contest came via Van Vuuren (5), Van Drunen (3), Sam Van Der Valk (3), Kelly Johnson (2) and Sofia Corominas Cuen (2).
Up Next
St. Thomas Aquinas College visits American International College for their second of two meetings this season, this time an NE10 matchup, on Friday, October 21 at 3:00 p.m. in Springfield, Massachusetts.