STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (8-3, 4-1 GNAC) defeated Simmons University (7-7, 5-3 GNAC), 15-5, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) North Division women's lacrosse action at the SJC Athletics Complex on Tuesday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Monks and Sharks stood at a 1-1 stalemate after the first quarter, but the hosts took the lead for good when junior Mackenzie Siebert (Naples, Maine) scored off a Bridget Collins (Milford, Conn.) pass at the 13:04 mark of the second stanza. During the remainder of the frame, Collins hit pay dirt twice and freshman Dinah Wadleigh (Augusta, Maine) netted her fifth goal of the season to help Saint Joseph's claim a 5-2 advantage at intermission.
The conference rivals swapped scores in the opening three minutes of the third period before the Monks rattled off five consecutive strikes – including a pair from senior Carson Battaglia (Gorham, Maine) - to secure an 11-3 cushion going into the fourth frame.
Simmons junior Maddie Desimio-Maloney (Newburyport, Mass.) opened the fourth quarter scoring to cut the SJC lead to 11-4 with 12:23 remaining, but Siebert added a pair of goals during a 4-0 St. Joe's run that saw the hosts earn a 15-4 lead. Junior Layla Drinkwater (Bolton Valley, Vt.) struck for the Sharks to cap the game scoring with 3:10 left.
TEAM STATS:
Saint Joseph's held the lead in shots (36-15), shots on goal (23-10), ground balls (45-24), and caused turnovers (19-12) while Simmons posted a 15-9 advantage in draw controls in the conference contest.
THE KEEPERS:
The Monks deployed all three of their netminders in the victory, as sophomore starter Alexis Eldridge (Effingham, N.H.) allowed two goals and made a pair of saves in the first half, junior Morgan Wright (Chelmsford, Mass.) gave up two tallies and turned away two shots in 22:43 minutes, and freshman Julia Price (Newbury, Mass.) made a save and yielded one goal in 7:17 between the pipes.
Simmons freshman goalie Anya Younie (Weymouth, Mass.) registered eight saves and picked up four ground balls in a losing effort.
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
- Siebert scored six goals with three assists
- Collins added three goals, five assists, and two ground balls
- Battaglia notched three goals and an assist with nine ground balls and five draw controls
- Sophomore Celia Melanson (Waterford, Maine) chipped in with a goal, an assist, and eight ground balls
- Senior Madison Scott (Cumberland, Maine) tallied six ground balls and eight caused turnovers; she broke her own SJC single season caused turnovers record, which now stands at 48 and counting
- Senior Heather Rohr (Merrimack, N.H.) posted five ground balls, two draw controls, and three caused turnovers and hit the century mark in caused turnovers for her career when she forced a miscue midway through the fourth quarter
- Freshman Taylor Dumond (Minisink, N.Y.) added a goal, four ground balls, and three caused turnovers
LEADERS – SIMMONS:
- Desimio-Maloney tallied two goals, two ground balls, and six draw controls
- Grad Riley Wasiuk (Rutland, Mass.) added a goal, four ground balls, three draw controls, and three caused turnovers
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the triumph, Saint Joseph's improves to 11-7 all-time versus Simmons University and has now defeated the Sharks in five consecutive meetings.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will play at Colby-Sawyer College on Friday at 4:00 PM.
