North Adams, MA- The Spartans battled the Norwich Cadets in the opening round of the CIAO Classic hosted by MCLA on Saturday, Sept. 7. The two Vermont clubs staggered to a 0-0 draw in a physical match that saw four yellow cards and several knocks and bruises in North Adams.

Nate Koenemann earned his third consecutive clean sheet of the season, as the Spartans extended their streak of holding opponents scoreless to three games. 

Opportunities came few and far between in the first frame. Neither team could muster a quality chance and at half both sides looked to make adjustments. 

Each squad had quality chances in the second half. Norwich had a golden opportunity off a corner kick in the 67th minute. Chris Bristol sent a curling ball towards the box and Nathan Bacon headed the ball past Koenemann. Spartan defender Eric Cross came to the rescue and headed the ball out of the net to keep it scoreless.

Minutes later, Castleton had its best opportunity of the game. Spencer Dandurand took a through pass to the right corner and then beat a Norwich defender. He was one on one with Norwich keeper Greg Payne but had a poor angle. Dandurand took a shot to the short side and hit the post.

Neither team created any golden chances in the first overtime. Each side attempted just one shot, neither of which was on goal. The tightly contested match was evidenced by Norwich's slim 13-12 shot advantage. Koenemann had five saves for Castleton, while his counterpart Payne stopped a pair of shots for Norwich.

Norwich is now 2-1-1 heading into tomorrow's game with MCLA while Castleton moves 2-0-1 and will play Union (NY) tomorrow at Noon.