WATERVILLE, Maine – The Castleton University field hockey team dropped its regular season finale to Thomas College on Saturday morning by a final score of 4-0.

The loss bumps Castleton out of the fourth and final North Atlantic Conference playoff spot, while Thomas advances to the conference tournament following the win. 

Thomas picked up the opening goal at the 7:42 mark of the first half when Kelci Faulkingham settled a pass at the top of the circle and found Gabby Martell at the left post, who put the Terriers up 1-0 with her seventh goal of the season. 

Despite outshooting Thomas 8-4 in the first 35 minutes, including five straight on goal between Sarah Wells, Emily Lowell, and Haley Spittle, the Spartans went into the break down 2-0 after Tiffany Weeks of Thomas tacked on another goal off a corner at the 30:41 mark.

Coming out of the break, Castleton continued pressure in the offensive zone with three shots on goal over a four-minute span to start the second half. Thomas goalkeeper Abby Charrier was up to the task, keeping the Spartans off the board before Thomas responded with another goal of their own. Martell picked up her second of the game at the 41:45 mark, shifting momentum back in favor of the home team. 

After a back-and-forth battle over the next 12 minutes, the Terriers scored their fourth and final goal of the contest at 53:49 when Faulkingham collected a rebound and fed Lindsay Morong who found the back of the cage to finish the scoring as Thomas went on to win, 4-0. 

Wells led the offense with five shots on goal, followed by Spittle with four. Meeghan Doris recorded three saves on seven shots in the contest, despite falling to 6-12 on the season.

Castleton finishes its season with a 6-12 overall record and 2-3 in NAC action.