PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Saint Joseph's College (16-1) defeated Plymouth State University (5-10), 4-1, in a non-conference field hockey game on Monday afternoon.
THE LEAD
Freshman Emma Rutledge (Alfred, Maine) notched a goal and an assist to lead the Monks past the Panthers and help Saint Joseph's reach the 16-win mark for the first time in program history.
THE REST OF THE STORY
Saint Joseph's took a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute when junior Libby Pomerleau (Limerick, Maine) settled the ball from 12 yards out, then slapped a backhanded shot to the right post for her team-leading 16th goal of the year.
The visitors doubled the lead in the 23rd minute, when junior Maddy Beaulieu (West Gardiner, Maine) took a shot from the right side that Rutledge redirected into the goal past sophomore Jess Distler (Brookfield, N.H.).
SJC took a 3-0 lead with just 2:30 left in the first half, as Rutledge sent a pass to freshman Leah Mayes (Lebanon, N.H.), whose shot took a funny hop and bounced past Distler.
Senior Kayla Kelly (York, Maine) made it 4-0 with a rebound goal less than two minutes into the second half.
PSU broke through in the 63rd minute when Haley Wakefield (South Paris, Maine) made a move around a Monks' defender before sending a long pass to Shannon Ford (Bow, N.H.) on the near post. Ford poked the ball through Megan Baker's (Gorham, Maine) legs to account for the 4-1 final.
THE KEEPERS
Baker made three saves in the victory while Distler totaled 11 stops in the losing effort.
TEAM STATS
Saint Joseph's held sizeable leads in shots (27-4), shots on goal (15-4), and penalty corners (14-2) in the victory.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING
Saint Joseph's is now 6-4 all-time versus Plymouth State University and today's winning margin is the most recorded by either team in the history of the matchup.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's closes out the 2018 regular season Wednesday with a 7:00 PM home contest versus Lasell College while Plymouth State plays at Worcester State University in LEC action Saturday at 12:00 PM.
THANKS IN LARGE PART TO PLYMOUTH STATE SPORTS INFORMATOIN