ITHACA, N.Y. – In a battle of NFHCA Top 25 teams, the #17 Ithaca Bombers edged the #9 York Spartans 1-0 in a highly competitive non-conference contest on Saturday in Ithaca, N.Y.
The Bombers scored 1:09 into the game and then were able to keep the Green and White off the board over the final 58 mi The loss was the first for the Spartans as they fall to 4-1 while the Bombers improve to 4-2 with the win.
 
How It Happened
• The Bombers jumped on the Spartans early as they drew a penalty corner just 1:02 into the game. Ithaca inserted the corner to Emma Garver at the top of the circle. She sent a pass to space on the right-hand side of the circle. Meara Bury came flying out of nowhere to bat home to pass for the opening salvo.
• The Spartans had a pair of penalty corners and two shots over the final nine minutes of the quarter but they wouldn't be able to find the mark as the hosts maintained their 1-0 lead.
• The second quarter was lacking in action in either team's offensive zone as the play was confined to the middle of the field.
• York played well in the third quarter as they drew a penalty corner early in the stanza. York got a Tori Heiserman shot but Ithaca's Maeve Clark made the save to keep York off the board. While the Spartan offense was trying to break through, the York defense was doing an outstanding job of limiting the Ithaca chances. In fact, after the Bombers goal, the Spartans held Ithaca to just one shot until midway through the fourth quarter.
• York had a strong start to the fourth quarter as they got a Heiserman shot and a penalty corner in the opening three minutes of the period. York then put back-to-back shots on goal as Clark made stops on Kelsey Welsh and Heiserman with 11:07 left in the game. The Bombers responded with back-to-back shots on goal of their own but Belle Fields recorded a pair of saves to keep the deficit at one.
• That was the extent of the offense for either side in the remainder of the game as the Bombers held on for the narrow win.
• York finished the game with a 7-4 edge in total shots while Ithaca held a 4-3 margin in shots on goal. York held a 5-2 advantage in penalty corners in the game.
 
Spartan Notes
The two teams have split their two all-time meetings with both games being a one-goal game … last year York won 2-1 at Kinsley Field … four of York's five games this year have been one goal decisions as the Spartans are 3-1 in those games … York suffered their first shutout loss of the year … the Spartans were held to a season-low seven shots with a season-low three on goal … the Ithaca goal snapped a two game shutout run for the Spartans … York allowed just four shots (all on goal), their second lowest total of the year (2 vs. St. Mary's) … the game was the first of a four-game road swing that features match ups against three nationally ranked squads … Saturday's defeat snaps the Spartans' four-game winning streak to start the year.
 
Up Next
The Spartans return to action on Tuesday, September 17 when they head to historic Homewood Field to take on #2 Johns Hopkins, the 2023 Division III National Runner-Up, in a non-conference contest. The match is slated for a 6:00 pm start.