Courtesy of Lafayette College Athletics Communications

MERION, Pa. - No. 20 Lafayette field hockey took No. 3 Saint Joseph's down to the wire, dropping a 1-0 final in Friday morning's NCAA Tournament first-round contest.

Three saves by junior goalkeeper Raffi Fragomeni kept the game scoreless through the first quarter at Ellen ryan Field.

Lafayette fought its way through the midfield in period two, making a handful of drives towards the circle. Ultimately, both teams were left tied at the break with zero shots on goal.

Senior co-captain Lineke Spaans posted the Maroon and White's first shot of the day at 37:23, a winding reverse just wide after breaking through a handful of Hawks at the top of the circle. Fragomeni stopped a pair of St. Joseph's advances to keep even heading into the final 15 minutes of regulation.

The Hawks' Alison Buffington found the go-ahead goal at 49:53 with a penalty corner rebound.

A last-minute defensive save by Lena Thedrian, as Lafayette had pulled its goalkeeper at the 56-minute mark for an extra field player, closed out the 1-0 decision.

St. Joseph's held the advantage in total shots (14-1) and penalty corners (6-0). Fragomeni made nine saves while her Hawk counterpart, Marith Bijkerk, was left untested.

The 2024 Patriot League Champion Leopards close out the season with a 14-7 (5-1 PL) record, ending witht their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2012.