Black Sticks beaten by Spain in third test

Three unanswered goals have helped hosts Spain to a 3-1 win over the Vantage Black Sticks Women in the third test in Barcelona.

The Kiwis opened the scoring in through a 10th minute Kelsey Smith field goal before Spain fought back to take control.

Two quick-fire penalty corner goals in the second quarter from Lola Riera and Maria Lopez gave the hosts a 2-1 halftime lead before Belen Iglesias pushed the buffer out further in the 35th minute.

Black Sticks assistant coach Sean Dancer said it was not a great performance from his side in the face of pressure from Spain.

"Spain played very well today, put us under a lot of pressure and were rewarded for their efforts," he said.

"We need to be better in our next performance and make sure we wrap this series on a positive note."

The fourth and final test between the Vantage Black Sticks and Spain will be played at 5:30am on Thursday morning (NZT).

The series is part of New Zealands build-up for the FIH World League Semi Final in Brussels from 21 June - 2 July.

VANTAGE BLACK STICKS 1: (Kelsey Smith)

SPAIN 3: (Lola Riera, Maria Lopez, Belen Iglesias)

Halftime: Spain 2-1



- This story has been automatically published using a media release from Hockey NZ