WELLESLEY, Mass. – Wellesley College (1-0) defeated Saint Joseph's College (0-1), 2-1, in what was the season opener for both programs in non-conference field hockey action on Friday afternoon.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Monks struck first as sophomore forward Libby Pomerleau (Saco, Maine) netted an unassisted goal in the 21st minute. The visitors' edge lasted nearly eight minutes, as Wellesley junior Arielle Mitropoulos (Cambridge, Mass.) put the hosts on the board with a goal off a Haley Chrobock (Branchville, N.J.) feed nearly eight minutes later.

The 1-1 deadlock was snapped 10 minutes into the second stanza when Chrobock potted the eventual game-winner off an Emmy Hamilton (New York, N.Y.) pass at the 45:22 mark.

THE KEEPERS:

Saint Joseph's junior netminder Megan Baker (Gorham, Maine) made five saves over 70 minutes of play while her counterpart, Wellesley junior Maggie Connelly (Duxbury, Mass.), posted three saves in the hosts' season-opening triumph.

TEAM STATS:

Wellesley held the lead in shots (13-6), shots on goal (7-5), and penalty corners (9-0) en route to the triumph.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

With the result, Saint Joseph's falls to 0-3 in the history of the series with Wellesley College. In the 2016 opener, the Blue defeated the Monks by a 4-0 margin in Portland on September 3rd.

St. Joe's is now 10-12-1 all-time in season opening play and suffers an inaugural loss for just the third time in the last 11 years.

NEXT!

The Monks return to action next Friday when they host Rivier University in the 2017 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) opener. The game will begin at 8:00 PM at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland.

#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.