PORTLAND, Maine – Freshman forward Libby Pomerleau (Limerick, Maine) scored in the 64th minute to lift Saint Joseph's College (13-6, 5-1 GNAC) past Simmons College (11-8, 5-1 GNAC), 1-0, in the 2016 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Field Hockey Championship at Deering Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
With the victory, Saint Joseph's claims the first conference crown and subsequent NCAA DIII National Tournament berth in the 22-year history of the program. Since 2008, the Monks have appeared in a conference title bout on six occasions – including a 1-0 setback at the hands of the Sharks in Boston last fall – with four losses being decided by one goal and two either coming in overtime or penalty strokes.
The complete NCAA Tournament bracket will be announced on Monday.
With the loss, the 2016 season comes to a close for Simmons College.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The contest seemed destined for overtime before Pomerleau scored her team-leading 15th goal of the year at the 63:52 mark. Sophomore Kara Kelly (York, Maine) found Pomerleau with a left-to-right pass across the goalmouth and the freshman standout slammed the shot past Simmons netminder Brianna Rastello (Salem, N.H.).
The Sharks had several prime scoring opportunities as well, as SJC sophomore keeper Megan Baker (Gorham, Maine) denied junior forward Sammy Rondeau (Franklin, Mass.) on a hard shot off a penalty corner in the 56th minute and St. Joe's sophomore defender Arianna Kahler (Lisbon Falls, Maine) forced a turnover after Simmons was awarded a corner attempt as time expired.
TEAM STATS
Simmons held a sizeable 10-3 shots advantage with a 4-3 lead in shots on goal and an 8-7 edge in penalty corners on the afternoon.
THE KEEPERS
Baker picked up her seventh shutout of the year after making four saves while Rastello made a pair of stops in the losing effort. Senior midfielder Robin Powell (Richmond, Vt.) also tallied a defensive save in the title contest.
NOTEWORTHY
- Prior to this afternoon, Simmons was the only program to earn a GNAC Field Hockey Championship – the sport was added to the conference docket in 2014 and the Sharks defeated Anna Maria, 3-1, in the 2014 title game and edged the Monks by a 1-0 score last season
- Rondeau led all participants with four shots
- No SJC player registered more than one shot, as Pomerleau, senior Kelsey Dumond (Lewiston, Maine), junior Elyse Caiazzo (Scarborough, Maine/Cheverus), and freshman Maddy Beaulieu (West Gardiner, Maine) posted a shot apiece in the victory
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Libby Pomerleau, Saint Joseph's – MVP
Kelsey Dumond, Saint Joseph's
Hayley Winslow, Saint Joseph's
Arianna Kahler, Saint Joseph's
Elyse Caiazzo, Saint Joseph's
Robin Powell, Simmons
Julia Saltamartini, Simmons
Brianna Rastello, Simmons
Katarina Brunette, Johnson & Wales
Giovanna Ciavardoni, Johnson & Wales
Denise Landry, Lasell
Julia Franzik, Lasell
#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.
