STANDISH, Maine – Simmons University (8-5, 6-3 GNAC) stunned Saint Joseph's College (12-3, 8-1 GNAC), 2-1, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) field hockey contest at the SJC Athletics Complex on Wednesday evening.
For the Monks, the loss snaps a 25-game regular season winning streak versus conference opponents and a seven-game victory string this fall. The Monks' last GNAC setback was a 2-1 loss at the hands of Lasell University on October 7th, 2017.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The hard-fought defensive battle remained scoreless until the 43rd minute, when freshman Hannah Groves (Durham, Maine) scored off a penalty corner. The Sharks struck again at the 54-minute mark when freshman Emilia Elko (Richboro, Pa.) hit pay-dirt following a free hit near the top of the circle.
The Monks finally found the board at the 56:09 mark, when junior Molly McCluskey (Orono, Maine) scored off an Aimee Adams (Gardiner, Maine) assist on a penalty corner play. The Sharks' stout defense held the hosts without a scoring opportunity for the remainder of the contest.
TEAM STATS:
Saint Joseph's held the lead in shots (16-3), shots on goal (10-2), and penalty corners (13-2) in the losing effort.
THE KEEPERS:
Simmons junior netminder Emma Sheehan (Taunton, Mass.) registered nine saves while SJC freshman Kassidy Collins (Gardiner, Maine) did not record a save in the setback.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the loss, Saint Joseph's falls to 20-7 all-time versus Simmons University, a team the Monks had defeated in seven-consecutive meetings prior to tonight's contest.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will play at Johnson & Wales University on Saturday in a GNAC match slated to start at 1:00 PM.
