The Thomas College field hockey team nearly pulled off one of its biggest wins in the program’s history Sunday. Playing on the road against Castleton, which is undefeated in the North Atlantic Conference, Thomas led by two goals at the half before losing 4-3 when the Spartans scored with just over a minute left.

“One thing that the girls are going to take from that is that we can play and compete with anybody we play,” Thomas coach Andrea Thebarge said. “We really stuck to the game plan that we put forward. They executed on our offensive chances that we had. We were a little bit more aggressive in the circle than we have been.”

The Terriers are 5-9-0 overall and 3-5-0 in the conference. Barring any upsets, Thomas will likely enter the conference playoffs as the No. 7 seed. The quarterfinals are scheduled for Oct. 27.

Messalonskee graduate Miranda Tinsman has six goals, and Thebarge said Maranacook graduate Ally Kennedy and Winslow graduate Michelle Greene “really bring it every game” on offense.

Junior Brittany Premo is the top scorer for the Terriers, with eight goals. Premo was almost exclusively a forward until a couple weeks ago, when Thebarge started giving her significant minutes at midfield as well.

“She alternates between playing left midfielder and right wing for us,” Thebarge said. “She just has amazing speed and skill. It’s hard to defend her.”

Center back Lauren Hachey, a Messalonskee graduate, is a stalwart on defense and also has a goal and four assists.

“She is just amazing,” Thebarge said. “She definitely came in ready to play this year a lot more than she did last year. Her fitness is amazing. She’s a leader out on the field.”

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Former Cony cross country star Luke Fontaine, now at the University of Miami, had a nice showing Friday at the Black & Gold Invitational at the University of Central Florida. Fontaine placed ninth among 78 runners, completing the 8-kilometer course in 26 minutes, 41.93 seconds. The Hurricanes finished second among 11 teams in the meet.

Fontaine has taken nearly two minutes off his 8K time since the beginning of the regular season, when he ran a 28:27 on Sept. 7. The Hurricanes will compete in the ACC championships in Blacksburg, Va. on Oct. 27.

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College basketball teams are already practicing, and for most teams, the regular season begins in about a month. The Thomas College women host UMaine-Augusta on Nov. 16, and Colby on Nov. 20. The Thomas men play the University of New England at UMaine-Farmington on Nov. 16, and host UMaine-Machias one day later.

The UMF men host UMaine-Machias on Nov. 16, and on Nov. 17 the Beavers face the University of New England in a game played at Thomas. The UMF women open their season Nov. 16-17 at the UMass-Dartmouth Tip-Off Classic, where the Beavers will take on Southern Maine and UMass-Dartmouth.

The Colby women will start the 2012-13 season at Maine Maritime Academy in a four-team tournament. Colby plays Bridgewater State on Nov. 16 and either Maine Maritime or UMaine-Fort Kent the next afternoon. The Colby men begin at Babson College’s tournament, Nov. 17-18, then play at UMF Nov. 20.

Matt DiFilippo — 861-9243

mdifilippo@centralmaine.com

 

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