STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (12-6, 5-1 GNAC) scored twice in the second half to defeat Plymouth State University (11-4, 9-1 LEC), 4-2, in a non-conference field hockey contest at Mercy Field on a chilly Wednesday afternoon.

THE LEAD              

The Monks and Panthers essentially swapped scores in the high-action first frame, as the hosts built a 2-1 edge on goals from junior Kelsey Dumond (Lewiston, Maine) and freshman Michalia Parent (Westborough, Mass.) before Plymouth junior Kendal Lariviere (Dover, N.H.) knotted the contest, 2-2, in the 25th minute.

The stalemate remained at intermission and beyond, as the Monks claimed lead for good when senior Amanda Celata (Dedham, Mass.) potted the eventual game-winner at the 63:23 mark. Parent provided some breathing room when she netted her second tally of the day with 57 seconds remaining to account for the 4-2 final.

GOAL HISTORY

1.              7:51        PSU                           Kialah Reeder    Kaitlyn Wilder     

The first goal of the contest was scored on a Plymouth penalty corner, as freshman forward Kialah Reeder (Enfield, N.H.) sent a pass, from the top of the circle, to junior forward Kaitlyn Wilder (Framingham, Mass.), who was stationed near the left post and slammed home a one-timer to the lower right corner.

2.              9:27        SJMFH15               Kelsey Dumond                  (unassisted)        

St. Joe's answered less than two minutes later, as senior forward Brenna Fitzgibbon (Exeter, N.H.) executed a give-and-go near the left baseline with Dumond, who lofted her own rebound into the top left corner after sophomore Alivia Bates (Pennsauken, N.J.) stonewalled her first attempt.

3.              21:54     SJMFH15               Michalia Parent                  (unassisted)           

Parent provided the Monks with their first lead of the day when she collected a rebound off a Celata attempt and rattled off three rapid-fire shots near the right post, the first two attempts being stopped by Bates and the third finding the back of the cage.

4.              24:02     PSU                           Kendal Lariviere                 (unassisted)

The Panthers managed to knot the match quickly thereafter, as the visitors notched their second tally on another penalty corner bid. Junior midfielder Jordan Ray (Standish, Maine) served as the injector on the play and a shot from the top of the circle found several pieces of lumber in a crowd before Lariviere tipped the ball over the head of SJC rookie keeper Megan Baker (Gorham, Maine).

5.              63:23     SJMFH15               Amanda Celata                    Kelsey Dumond

The contest seemed destined for extra play, but Saint Joseph's managed to reclaim the lead in the 64th minute on an odd-man rush. Racing upfield into the circle, Parent fed the ball to Celata, who dished off to Dumond for a quick shot that deflected off Bates' leg pad directly to Celata, who finished the play with a shot into a wide-open cage.

6.              69:03     SJMFH15               Michalia Parent                 Amanda Celata

The Monks capitalized on some nifty passing in close proximity to the Panthers' cage in scoring an insurance marker with less than a minute remaining. Dumond, streaking towards the goal near the right-side baseline, dealt a crisp pass to freshman Kara Kelly (York, Maine), who dished a feed to the left to Celata. The senior quickly connected with her freshman line-mate, as Parent one-timed a blast between Bates and the left post.  

THE KEEPERS

Baker made six saves to pick up her 10th win of the season, becoming just the third SJC goalie to reach double-digits in victories in the process. Bates also posted six stops in a losing effort.

TEAM STATS

Saint Joseph's held a 15-12 shots advantage while Plymouth State owned a 9-5 lead in penalty corners during the hard-fought contest.

SENIOR MOMENT

Prior to the start of the game, a brief ceremony was held to honor the field hockey program's four seniors: Celata, Fitzgibbon, Chelsea Bordeau (Rumford, Maine), and Meghan Williams (Greenland, N.H./St. Thomas Aquinas). With this quartet in the fold, the Monks have posted a collective 50-21 (.704) overall record with a 23-7 (.767) mark in conference play.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

With the victory, Saint Joseph's improves to 4-3 all-time versus Plymouth State University and has defeated the Panthers in consecutive meetings for the first time in the seven-game history of the series. The four-goal total is the most SJC has ever scored in a game against PSU.

NEXT!

Saint Joseph's is off until next Wednesday when the Monks, as the #2 seed in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament, face the #3 Anna Maria College/#6 Mount Ida College quarterfinal victor in a semifinal match at Deering Memorial Stadium in Portland (start TBD).

Plymouth State wraps up the regular season Saturday with a Little East Conference (LEC) contest at home versus Eastern Connecticut State University. The match is slated to start at 11:30 AM.

Senior Day

#GOMONKS

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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.