The St. Thomas Aquinas College men's soccer team took a tough 2-1 loss at Dowling College in the East Conference opener for both teams. Brian Kinsella's goal gave the Spartans a first-half lead that they held until the waning minutes. The Spartans fell to 2-4 overall, with Dowling improving to 1-4.

Kinsella took a feed from Joshua Timmins at 11:45 and beat Golden Lions' keeper Scott Flores to give the Spartans an early 1-0 lead. STAC carried that edge into the halftime locker room and well into the second half, appearing well on their way to victory before the hosts snatched the contest.

Alex Hales sent a cross into the box that Mike Gronenthal converted with just 7:16 left to tie the score, and Dowling continued that momentum on Sean Collins marker just 3:44 later, giving the Golden Lions the victory in regulation.

Jack Nicholson was the hard-luck loser for the Spartans, making three saves as Dowling ended the afternoon with a 17-12 advantage in shots.

The Spartans finally make their home debut with a pair of ECC contests this weekend, hosting Roberts Wesleyan on Friday and Daemen on Sunday, with both games set to start at 3:00 pm as the back end of a double-header after the women's teams play.