STANDISH, Maine – Saint Joseph's College (7-2, 5-0 GNAC) sailed past Rivier University (3-3, 2-3 GNAC), 17-7, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's lacrosse contest at the SJC Athletics Complex on Wednesday evening.
MILESTONE MET:
With her game-opening goal scored at the 13:33 mark of the first quarter, grad student Lydia Dexter (Oakland, Maine) became the second player in SJC women's lacrosse history to tally 300 career points. She joins former standout Elyse Caiazzo '18, who is the Monks' all-time leader with 319 career points.
The grad attacker entered tonight's game with 299 points and hit the 300 mark with her 38th goal of the season, as junior Carson Battaglia (Gorham, Maine) was credited with the assist on Dexter's milestone marker.
It took Dexter just 54 games to reach the triple-century mark while Caiazzo notched her 300th point in 65 career games. She currently ranks fourth among all active NCAA DIII players in career points, fifth in assists (137), eighth in assists per game (2.51), 10th in points per game (5.64), 12th in goals (169), and 12th in ground balls (153).
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Monks outscored the Raiders by an 8-0 margin in the first quarter as six different players hit pay dirt to set the pace early. Freshman Celia Melanson (Waterford, Maine) capped the second stanza scoring with her second career goal and hosts holding a 13-2 cushion.
Sophomore Shauna Clark (Oakland, Maine) and Dexter both scored in the third period to make it a 15-3 game before the Raiders opened the fourth frame with three unanswered tallies to make it a nine-goal game. Battaglia and freshman Lydia Hill (Windham, Maine) countered a Sarah Lachance (Chelmsford, Mass.) strike in the closing minutes to account for the 17-7 final.
TEAM STATS:
Saint Joseph's held the lead in shots (36-12), shots on goal (26-10), ground balls (32-18), draw controls (15-10), and caused turnovers (20-16) in the victory.
THE KEEPERS:
SJC freshman starter Alexis Eldridge (Effingham, N.H.) made three saves in 36:32 of play to pick up the victory while sophomore Morgan Wright (Chelmsford, Mass.) logged 23:28 in relief for the hosts.
Rivier junior Lindsey Kruger (New Bedford, Mass.) made nine saves in a losing effort.
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
- Dexter registered three goals, four assists, five ground balls, eight draw controls, and three caused turnovers
- Clark also netted three goals and dealt four assists with three ground balls and three draw controls
- Sophomore Mackenzie Siebert (Naples, Maine) scored three goals on six shots
- Battaglia added two goals and two assists with four ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers
- Junior Bridget Collins (Milford, Conn.) contributed two goals and an assist with three ground balls
- Senior Tara Powers (Tyngsboro, Mass.) picked up four ground balls and four caused turnovers
- Junior Madison Scott (Cumberland, Maine) posted four caused turnovers
- Junior Heather Rohr (Merrimack, N.H.) notched three ground balls and three caused turnovers
LEADERS – RIVIER:
- Cassie Hemmerdinger (Pelham, N.H.) tallied three goals, two assists, and three ground balls
- Rachel Hinkley (Swedesboro, N.J.) added two goals and a pair of assists
- Lachance recorded two goals with an assist, four ground balls, three draw controls, and three caused turnovers
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the triumph Saint Joseph's improves to 11-2 all-time versus Rivier University and has now defeated the Raiders in 10-consecutive meetings dating back to the 2013 season.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will host Albertus Magnus College on Saturday in a GNAC matchup slated to start at 2:00 PM.
