Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. - Holding a 4-1 lead early in the third quarter, the St. Thomas Aquinas College Field Hockey team allowed four consecutive goals, including the game-winner in overtime, as Mercy University rallied back for a 5-4 victory on Wednesday afternoon at Mercy Field.

STAC falls to 3-12 overall and 3-7 in the NE10, while Mercy improves to 6-8 and 5-5.

Olivia Cerbo tallied a pair of goals in the match for the Spartans, while Madelyn Verstraten and Nicola Van Vuuren also picked up goals. The Mavericks Kate Ringstad scored a hat-trick on the afternoon and Rachel Palladino add two goals of her own.

Carlijn De Groot (L, 2-8) got the start in the cage for the maroon and gold and allowed five goals on 12 shots, while on the opposite end of the field Alexandra Giordano (W, 5-7) made seven saves on 11 shots faced.

How it Happened

• 17th Minute: On a penalty corner insert, the Spartans Adriana Alfisi sent a shot toward the cage that did not get through a scrum of players in front. Madelyn Verstraten found the loose ball and poked it past goalie Alexandra Giordano at the right post to make it 1-0 STAC.
• 23rd Minute: Another penalty corner insert by St. Thomas Aquinas resulted in Nicola Van Vuuren firing a shot toward the net, with Olivia Cerbo getting a redirection with her stick past Giordano and into the cage to double the visitors' advantage at 2-0.
• 23rd Minute: Moments later, a penalty corner by the Mavericks resulted in Kate Ringstad ripping a shot at Carlijn De Groot, which rolled just under the diving goalie to cut the deficit to 2-1.
• 25th Minute: An offensive rush upfield by the Spartans allowed an outlet pass by Olivia Cerbo to teammate Nicola Van Vuuren, who put a laser shot on target, beating Giordano to give the maroon and gold another two-goal advantage, 3-1.
• 34th Minute: Olivia Cerbo's second goal of the match came just minutes into the third quarter. An initial shot by Erin Bacalles was stopped by Alexandra Giordano, but a loose rebound was picked up and poked over the goal line by a diving Cerbo to give STAC a commanding 4-1 lead.
• 34th Minute: On a restart following a foul, Kate Ringstad picked up the ball and after some stickhandling, fired a shot to the net, beating Carlijn De Groot at the left post to make it 4-2.
• 36th Minute: Mercy cut the STAC lead to just one, as Kate Ringstad stole the ball from the Spartans and marched upfield with her teammates. Ringstad's pass to Kelly Rosenfeld allowed Rosenfeld to find a wide open Rachel Palladino who beat De Groot one-on-one to make it a 4-3 game.
• 54th Minute: The game tying goal came with the man-advantage for the Mavericks, as Rieley Fitzgerald made her way up the near sideline and cut toward the net making a late pass to Rachel Palladino who blasted one past De Groot to knot things at 4-4.
• 67th Minute (OT): Kate Ringstad tallied the game-winner in the extra session, as she was awarded a penalty stroke following a collision with goalie Carlijn while on a two-on-one. Ringstad picked up her hat-trick goal with a high shot, beating De Groot to complete the comeback for Mercy, taking the match 5-4.

Inside the Box Score

• Nicola Van Vuuren's goal on Wednesday puts her back in the team lead with nine.
• Olivia Cerbo tallied the first and second goals of her 2023 season.
• Madelyn Verstraten picked up her second tally of the year in the match.
• Mercy outshot STAC 18-15, while the host Mavericks also earned an 11-4 penalty corners advantage over the Spartans.
• Nicola Van Vuuren recorded a team-high four shots, with all four going on goal.

Up Next

STAC visits Assumption University on Saturday, October 21. The NE10 tilt between the Spartans and Greyhounds gets underway at 4:00 p.m. inside of Brian Kelly Stadium in Worcester, Massachusetts.