STANDISH, Maine – University of Southern Maine (6-13) edged Saint Joseph's College (12-5), 1-0, in a non-conference field hockey contest at the SJC Athletics Complex on Monday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Following a mostly uneventful first half, both teams seemed energized at the start of the second stanza and the Huskies capitalized at the 41:30 mark, when junior Dorina Sirois (Saco, Maine) scored on a penalty corner. After receiving the pass from senior injector Kaitlin Hilton (Saco, Maine), Sirois slammed a one-timer past SJC junior keeper Megan Baker (Gorham, Maine), who kicked her right leg out narrowly missing the ball as it crossed the line.
Applying plenty of offensive pressure late, the Monks' best scoring chance came at the 65:29 mark when Libby Pomerleau (Saco, Maine) backhanded a pass, in traffic, near the goalmouth to Kayla Kelly (York, Maine), who took a shot that trickled past the right post.
Saint Joseph's had three corners, including one after time expired, and six shots in the closing minutes but could not solve USM freshman keeper McKenzie Cormier (Hiram, Maine).
THE KEEPERS:
Cormier made 14 stops in the shutout effort while St. Joe's junior Megan Baker (Gorham, Maine) did not record a save in the loss.
TEAM STATS:
Saint Joseph's held sizeable leads in shots (21-2), shots on goal (14-1) and penalty corners (12-2) in the losing effort.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the loss, Saint Joseph's falls to 5-16 in the history of the series with University of Southern Maine. Heading into today's game, the Monks carried a four-game winning streak versus the Huskies with four of the last five games between the in-state rivals having been decided by one goal.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will host Plymouth State University on Wednesday at 4:00 PM. For Southern Maine, today's contest marks the end of the 2017 campaign.
#GOMONKS
Follow Saint Joseph's Athletics on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram!
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.