CASTLETON, Vt. – University of Maine at Farmington field hockey (4-1, 0-1) dropped the North Atlantic Conference opener to Castleton University (3-5, 1-0) on Saturday afternoon with a 4-2 loss at Spartan Stadium.
The Spartans scored three times in the opening half. Haley Spittle charted the first goal of the contest in the 15th minute. Emily Lowell and Rachel Holland added a pair of goals in a 1:07 span later in the period.
UMF cut the deficit to 3-1 when Nickyia Lovely (Gardiner, Maine/Gardiner) recorded her fourth goal of the year in the 47th minute.
After Castleton scored its fourth goal of the afternoon in the 58th minute, Emmah Spahr (Winthrop, Maine/Winthrop) posted her team-leading 10th goal of the season in the 61st minute.
Patty Smith (Gorham, Maine/Gorham) stopped 11 shots for the Beavers in goal.
UMF takes a break from conference play on Sunday with a trip to Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
