NEW PALTZ, N.Y. - The No. 23 Ithaca College field hockey team fell to the SUNY New Paltz Hawks in a double overtime thriller on the road Sept. 7. The loss marks the Bombers' first of the season, dropping their record to 3-1.

Possession was an even split throughout the entire competition, with the Hawks barely outshooting the Bombers 16-14. The first quarter was a battle in the midfield with neither team truly finding time to possess the ball, but the Hawks eventually fought off the Bombers' defense long enough to strike first. 

With 26 seconds remaining in the first quarter, the Bombers found themselves trailing 1-0. Midway through the second frame, however, the Ithaca offense began to find some momentum. Senior midfielder Meara Bury earned the Bombers their fourth penalty corner of the quarter, allowing senior striker Juliana Valli to find time and room at the stroke line. Her goal, assisted by senior defender Bella McCollister, tied the score at 1-1.

New Paltz registered one more penalty corner just over a minute following Valli's goal, but failed to convert before the half closed.

The second half looked nearly identical to the first: a defensive battle with few scoring opportunities. In a deja vu play, the Hawks were able to gain the lead once again with just under a minute remaining in the third quarter. After a string of five consecutive penalty corners over the course of three minutes, New Paltz eventually converted to make the score 2-1. 

It took a last-minute effort to keep hope alive for the Bombers in regulation. Halfway through the final frame, junior striker Brenna Schoenfeld earned the Bombers their 10th penalty corner of the competition. 

After sending the ball to the top of the arc, Catherine Papa regained possession to find space on the left side of the circle. She snuck one past the Hawks' goalkeeper, bringing the score to an even 2-2 to keep the Bombers in contention. 

The Hawks earned one last penalty corner with 30 seconds remaining in regulation, but a strong Ithaca defensive unit shut down the opportunity. The clock read zeroes, sending the game into its first 10-minute, 7-on-7 overtime period. 

New Paltz earned four penalty corners in the frame as opposed to the Bombers' one, but McCollister led the Ithaca defense out of each one. It was not until three minutes into the second overtime period that the Hawks would finally find a hole, finalizing the Bombers' sudden-death loss. 

The Bombers' sophomore goalkeeper Maeve Clark made her first appearance since Ithaca's season-opener against Kean University. She notched six saves through nine shots on the day. 

The Bombers will next take on the No. 15 SUNY Cortland Red Dragons in a road matchup at 7 p.m. Sept. 11.