PORTLAND, ME – Colby College (4-4, 0-4 NESCAC) eked out a 2-1 victory over Saint Joseph's (6-3, 3-0 NAC) on a rainy Wednesday evening at Deering Memorial Stadium.
In unsavory conditions under the lights, the in-state rivals were tied 1-1 late in the game, but Colby managed to secure the victory as senior Meryl Poulin (Cape Elizabeth, ME) scored the eventual game-winning goal for the Mules with 11:38 remaining in regulation
The Mules outplayed the Monks in the first half and held leads in both shots (4-1) and corners (2-0) in the opening stanza. The visitors parlayed the statistical advantages into a 1-0 lead, as Olivia Lattanzi '11 (Milton, MA) kicked off the game scoring at the 9:39 mark.
The 1-0 cushion stood for the Mules until early in the second half when Monks' senior forward Kayla Nowell (Bridgton, ME) steered a shot past Colby keeper Liz Fontaine '11 (Wilbraham, MA) just 3:32 into the latter period. Meghan Carr '14 (Topsham, ME) was credited with an assist, her first career point, on the game-tying marker.
Colby registered several scoring opportunities midway through the second half, but SJC goalie Meaghan Johnson '12 (Portland, ME/Cheverus) denied the Mules' advances and made three saves over a two-minute span to preserve the deadlock.
Each penalty corner proved to be crucial as the game progressed, and the Monks nearly punched through on such a play in the 57th minute. The Royal Blue netted three shots on target after Melanie Allen '13 (Jackson, NH) put a ball in play off a corner at the 55:45 mark, but Fontaine was up to the task on all three scoring chances.
The Mules answered the Monks' offensive efforts with a trip downfield that culminated with Poulin's game-winner at the 58:22 mark.
St. Joe's was awarded a pair of penalty corner chances in the final 10 minutes, but neither play would produce a scoring opportunity. A shot by Courtney Rague '11 (Old Orchard Beach, ME) was blocked with 10:12 remaining and the Monks took a corner with time expired that failed to yield a shot.
Johnson and Fontaine both recorded five saves in the evenly-matched contest.
With the win, Colby improves to 12-1 in the history of the matchup against Saint Joseph's. The Monks' lone victory over the Mules (3-2) came in overtime on October 16th, 2008.
Both teams will hit the field against conference foes this Saturday, as Saint Joseph's travels to Farmington for a 12:00 PM tilt, while Colby is set to host NESCAC rival Tufts University at 1:00 PM.
