CASTLETON, VT – Fifth seed Husson scored an early goal and the defense did the rest as they held the conference's top offense scoreless for the shocking 1-0 upset in the North Atlantic Conference semifinals on Wednesday at Spartan Stadium.

The Eagles came into the game as the underdog, but got an outstanding defensive effort from their entire team, highlighted by goalie Kristen Capen (Leeds, ME). Capen was a rock in net, turning away 16 Castleton shots and withstanding 25 Spartan corners. Husson, on the other hand, only managed 10 shots and two corners.

The visiting Eagles got their goal early, scoring just 4:44 into the contest. Sophomore forward Mariah Arno (Dover-Foxcroft, ME) sent a ball in front of the net where it was deflected by Kajsa Blindow (Morgan, VT) and fell to Sabrina Vaillancourt (Newport, ME) who knocked the ball to the back of the cage for the 1-0 lead.

The Spartans put pressure Capen for the remainder of the half but the senior stoned Castleton to the tune of 12 first-half saves. Senior Bridget Dusha (Greenwich, NY) also was tough in net with five stops of her own.

Early in the second half it looked like the Spartans might score the equalizer as sophomore Rachel Preusser's (Craryville, NY) one-timer went just wide of the net.

Castleton got another break with just 6:51 remaining as a Husson defender received a yellow card for a repeat offense of leaving too early on a penalty corner. With the five-minute man advantage, the Spartans ratcheted up the pressure with numerous corners and shots. However, they came up empty and Husson was able to withstand one final flourish in the last minute to preserve the victory.

Dusha finished the game with seven saves overall as the Spartans end their season with a 12-8 record overall.

Husson improves to 10-8 and moves on the NAC Championship where it will take on St. Joseph's, who advanced to the final with a 1-0 victory over New England College.