FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Eighty minutes wasn't enough to settle today's field hockey match between Fairfield University and Yale University and neither were the five strokes that comprise a traditional shootout. So the two teams went to the ninth stroke to determine who would win this contest. And with the stellar play of goalkeeper Payton Rahn, the Stags came out on top by winning the shootout by a 4-3 count.

The sophomore goalkeeper made six straight saves including all four in the second-round of sudden victory attempts by the Bulldogs to give her team a chance to win it on the ninth attempt. Agustina Casteluchi found the back of the cage to give the Stags a one goal advantage which required Yale to make their ninth try in order to keep the shootout going. But, Rahn made a diving stop to the near post to end what should be considered one of the most thrilling matches in sometime at University Field.

"Payton won the game for us," Head Coach Jackie Kane said. "She learned from the first set and was resilient after that. She had the confidence that nothing was going to get past her. She made it happen in that last round because she was able to handle the pressure."

Fairfield took some time to find itself offensively in this game as the Stags could not find much room inside the circle through the opening 15 minutes. While the team did not get a shot off in the first quarter, Yale managed to have a little more success. The visitors found their way to three shots in the opening period with Rahn turning two of those attempts to the side.

The second quarter proved more fruitful for Fairfield as the team started to find some flow beyond the midfield stripe. The Stags were the first team to break through on the scoreboard when Julianna Kratz secured her own rebound off a blocked shot and sent the ball into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead in the 22^nd minute of play.
The goal would hold up through the second quarter as Fairfield's defense kept Yale from taking any shots during the second quarter.
Yale regrouped at halftime and used more precision in moving the ball up the field and began exerting pressure as it did in the first quarter. The Bulldogs tied the game in the 37^th minute on a shot that was struck by Poppy Beales from the top of the circle and caught the far corner.

With the game still tied at 1-1 going to the fourth quarter, both teams had opportunities especially when penalty corners were awarded. And, it was off that set piece that Fairfield recaptured the lead after Pilar Mengotti finished off a corner that was inserted by Madison Hoskins and received by Carmel Van Dijk. Ironically, a penalty corner provided Yale with the chance to tie the game with under three minutes remaining in regulation and the team cashed in. Theodora Dillman converted a pass from Elle Barlow off a modified corner that would prolong the game for another 20 minutes.

Fairfield played the overtime aggressively which resulted in the team earning four penalty corners. The Stags outshot their opponent by a 4-1 count in the 20 minutes of overtime but the game remained knotted at 2-2 after 80 minutes.

In the shootout, Yale connected on its first three attempts while the Stags found the back of the goal twice in their first three tries. But from that point, Rahn would not allow another Yale student-athlete to beat her which gave Fairfield the chance to remain in the game. Fairfield tied the shootout at 3-3 on its fourth attempt which would be the last goal scored by either team for the next four rounds. Casteluchi connected on the team's ninth stroke and Rahn made her diving stop to secure the win for the Stags.

Fairfield returns to action with a pair of road games as the Stags open up the Northeast Conference portion of their schedule. The team travels to Sacred Heart on September 30 for a match that will played in New Haven. After that match, the Stags travel to Rider University for game two of the road swing which is scheduled for October 7.