UNION, NJ (September 9, 2015) – Kean University tallied the only goal of the game at 19:16 of the contest, and held off a late push by the Vassar College field hockey team as the Brewers dropped their first contest of the season Wednesday night, 1-0, in road non-conference play.

The only score of the game came just under 20 minutes into the contest off a penalty corner. KU's Krista LaMaina inserted the corner to the top of the circle for Marissa Robinson, who fired on cage. Robinson mishit the shot, and the top-spin bouncing ball was able to sneak past the pairing of freshmen Paige Amico (Carlsbad, CA/La Costa Canyon) and Molly Youse (New Cumberland, PA/Cedar Cliff) for the tally.

The Brewers had looked strong up to that point, holding possession for a good portion of the early going, taking the game's first two shots. After the goal, neither team could get solid zone time, as the two teams combined for just three shots over the final 15 minutes of action in the first period.

Things opened up after the intermission, as the Brewers pinned in the Cougars over the opening five minutes of the half. VC registered two penalty corners and three shots over the span, forcing KU keeper Katie DiCarlo to make a pair of saves to keep the game 1-0 in favor of the hosts.

Seven minutes into the second half, Kean almost double its lead as Chelsea Mann pushed a shot towards the left post but junior Sophie Arnold (Merion, PA/Merion) was there to thwart the opportunity for the Cougars. VC had to make another defensive save later in the period, as junior Lauren Shumate (Encinitas, CA/San Dieguito Academy) blocked a shot off a penalty corner with 13:45 to play.

Vassar's best chance to knot the game down the stretch came with 3:58 to play in regulation off of a penalty corner, as Lauren Wiebe (Chicago, IL/Francis W. Parker) fired a shot high but was denied by DiCarlo. As the clock ended, it marked the third consecutive game over the last three years that has ended 1-0 in favor of the home team.

The host Cougars outshot Vassar on the night narrowly, 12-10, while holding a slight advantage in penalty corners as well (7-5). Amico posted a career-high seven saves in the contest for the Brewers, and DiCarlo chalked up a shutout for KU after fending off four Vassar attempts. Brewer freshman Megan Caveny (Cicero, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) finished with a team-leading four shots, while fellow newcomer Alyssa More (Wilmington, DE/Mount Pleasant) added two more.

The Brewers will return home Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. for another non-conference bout, taking on The College of Brockport in an attempt to add to their 11-game win streak on Weinberg Field.