STANDISH, Maine - Second-seeded Saint Joseph's College (13-6, 5-1 GNAC) faces off against #1 Simmons College (13-4, 5-1 GNAC) in the 2015 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Field Hockey Championship on Saturday at 6:00 PM. The contest will be played on the MIT campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The winner of Saturday's title bout earns an automatic qualifier into the 2015 NCAA DIII Field Hockey Championship Tournament, which begins on Wednesday, November 11th.
How they got here:
Both Simmons and Saint Joseph's earned a first-round bye as the top two teams in the six-team GNAC Tournament.
Saint Joseph's advances to the GNAC Championship after defeating #3 Anna Maria College, 3-1, in a conference semifinal match played at Deering Memorial Stadium on Wednesday evening. Junior Kelsey Dumond (Lewiston, Maine) and freshman Michalia Parent (Westborough, Mass.) tallied a goal and an assist apiece in the triumph.
Simmons, the reigning GNAC Champion, toppled #5 Johnson & Wales University by a 3-0 margin in the other conference semifinal match on Wednesday. The Sharks were led by sophomore forward Julie Saltamartini (East Hampstead, N.H.), who tallied a pair of goals and assisted on the other Simmons tally.
What have you done lately?
Prior to the semifinal win over Anna Maria, the Monks had not played since the previous Wednesday when St. Joe's closed out the regular season with an impressive 4-2 victory over Little East Conference leader Plymouth State University. Parent netted a pair of goals and Dumond tallied a goal and an assist to help the Monks collect an important in-region victory.
Senior forward Amanda Celata (Dedham, Mass.) netted the eventual game-winner in the 64th minute and freshman keeper Megan Baker (Gorham, Maine) made six stops in the triumph.
Simmons is riding a four-game winning streak, with six wins in the last seven contests, and has not allowed a goal in the last 239 minutes of play, a stretch that spans nearly three-and-a-half games. The Sharks outscored their opponents by a 21-1 margin during the four-game win streak.
Recipe for success - Saint Joseph's:
The Monks have traditionally had one of the top defensive teams, and this year is no different, as Saint Joseph's ranks second in the conference in goals against average (1.30) and fewest goals allowed (25). St. Joe's is also second in the league with 195 penalty corners and fourth in goals (41) and goals per game (2.2). Versus conference opponents, the Monks allowed just four goals and 14 shots on goal overall in six matches this fall.
Recipe for success - Simmons:
Simmons has proven to be the most well-rounded team in the conference this fall, as the Sharks lead the GNAC in both goals against average (0.70) and goals per game (3.4), ranking sixth and 21st, respectively, in all of NCAA DIII Field Hockey in the statistical categories. The Sharks' 2.63 scoring margin also ranks 13th among all NCAA DIII programs. Simmons yielded five goals and 16 shots on net versus GNAC foes this season.
Who to watch – Saint Joseph's:
Parent leads the Monks with 26 points and three game-winners and ranks second on the team in goals (10) and assists (6). Dumond is the SJC leader in goals (11) and is second on the squad in total points. Senior Meghan Williams (Greenland, N.H./St. Thomas Aquinas) has 15 points (4G, 7A), Celata currently has 12 points (4G, 4A) and sophomore Bailey Cutler (Lisbon Falls, Maine) enters the title bout with 11 points (5G, 1A) to her credit.
Baker ranks second in the conference in goals against average (1.05) and shutouts (5) and is currently fifth in save percentage (.758).
Who to watch – Simmons:
Saltamartini is one of the best players in the conference and enters tonight's contest ranked second in the GNAC in goals (16) and fourth in total points (35). She also leads the league in game-winning goals (6).
Sophomore Sammy Rondeau is the Sharks' second leading scorer with 22 points (9G, 4A) and junior Jenna Gagnon is third on the team with 16 points (5G, 6A).
Junior goalkeeper Brianna Rastello is the conference leader in goals against average (0.77) and shutouts (7) and ranks fourth in the GNAC in save percentage (.786).
Attitude reflects leadership:
Saint Joseph's Head Coach Rupert Lewis, now in his 11th season at the helm, is 127-73 (.635) in his collegiate coaching career, an impressive record that includes an incredible 50-9 (.848) regular-season conference record. He is the program's all-time victories and winning percentage leader and skippered the SJC women's lacrosse team to its first GNAC Championship, and subsequent NCAA Tournament appearance, last spring.
Sixth-year Head Coach Amanda Maxwell owns a 58-54 (.518) career record, including a 38-18 (.679) mark over the last three seasons. She has earned Conference Coach of the Year honors following each of the past two campaigns and guided the Sharks to their first NCAA DIII Championship Tournament appearance after the team clinched the GNAC Championship title last fall.
The last time we met:
The Sharks handed the Monks their first GNAC loss in two seasons (GNAC began sponsoring field hockey last fall) with a 2-0 triumph over Saint Joseph's in Boston on October 3rd. Saltamartini scored both of the Simmons goals while Rastello stopped all three shots she faced in the victory. The Sharks held a slight 5-4 advantage in shots while the Monks posted a 3-1 lead in penalty corners in the setback.
Historically speaking:
Saint Joseph's is 14-7 in the history of the series with Simmons College and had defeated the Sharks in 10-consecutive meetings prior to the 2-0 loss earlier this season.
For the Monks, tonight's conference championship appearance will be the program's fifth in the last eight years. Still in search of the team's first conference title, Saint Joseph's has endured four difficult championship game losses, with three being decided by one goal and two either coming in overtime or penalty strokes.
Simmons makes its second straight appearance in the GNAC Championship, following last year's inaugural title match. The Sharks enter this year's championship as the number one seed after taking the crown as the second seed last year. This will be the third championship appearance for Simmons, having also played for the North Atlantic Conference title in 2003.
The Sharks defeated Anna Maria College, 3-1, in the GNAC Championship game and fell to University of New England, 2-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last fall.