PORTLAND, ME – University of Southern Maine (4-3) bested Saint Joseph's (2-2), 18-7, in non-conference women's lacrosse action at Deering Memorial Stadium on Thursday afternoon. Sophomore attacker Cassie Diplock (Augusta, Maine) paced the Monks with two goals and an assist in the losing effort.

St. Joe's found the back of the cage first as junior attacker Erika Waterhouse (South Portland, Maine) beat USM sophomore keeper Kim Vogel (Sanford, Maine) with a shot off an Amelia Santos (Beverly, Mass.) pass 1:45 after the opening whistle. Starting with an unassisted marker from junior attacker Lauren Santo (Salem, N.H.) 1:25 later, the Huskies scored three unanswered goals over a three-minute span. The Monks responded to make it a 3-3 contest with goals just 44 seconds apart from Diplock and senior Megan Cutter (Westbrook, Maine), respectively, but the visitors rattled off eight consecutive tallies and held an 11-4 cushion heading into intermission.

The Monks would fare no better starting off the second stanza as the Huskies put up four more goals, two from junior midfielder Shelby Turcotte (Lewiston, Maine), over the first 14 minutes of the latter period to take a 15-4 lead.

Diplock converted a free-position shot at the 14:38 mark and sophomore midfielder Anneka Adame (San Diego, Calif.) punched in her 11 goal of the season with 2:43 remaining to cap the Monks' scoring on the afternoon.

In net, Vogel faced 15 shots and recorded eight saves while sophomores Haley Nason (Saco, Maine) and Elizabeth Giacchino (Melrose, Mass.) split the contest and combined to make nine stops while facing 27 USM bids in the loss.

For St. Joe's, Adame collected six draw controls and five ground balls, Victoria Tenenbaum (Brunswick, Maine/McAuley) netted her first collegiate goal, and freshman midfielder Kirstin McCombs (Lewiston, Maine) scooped up five ground balls in the setback.

For Southern Maine, Turcotte and sophomore midfielder Rosie Forster (Andover, Mass.) tallied four goals apiece, sophomore midfielder Jacki Kelly (Brunswick, Maine) registered three goals and a game-high six assists, sophomore Jenna Cyr (Limerick, Maine) added three goals, and Santo produce a pair of markers. Junior midfielder Jessica Gassman (Kennebunk, Maine) and freshman attacker Melania Jankowski (Portland, Maine) chipped in with one goal apiece in the triumph.

Southern Maine held advantages in shots (32-17), ground balls (27-23) and draw controls (17-9) in the victory. With the loss, St. Joe's falls to 0-5 in the history of the series with USM.

Saint Joseph's returns to action next Wednesday when the team hosts GNAC-rival Emerson College at Deering Memorial Stadium at 7:30 PM. Southern Maine will travel to Endicott College on Saturday for a non-conference tilt slated to begin at 4:00 PM.

Saint Joseph's College, founded in 1912 by the Sisters of Mercy, celebrates its Centennial year in 2012 with a theme of "Realize the Promise" – honoring our commitment to educating well-rounded graduates who combine career focus with classic liberal arts studies. A Private, Catholic, primarily residential, coeducational liberal arts institution, Saint Joseph's welcomes students of all ages and all faiths. The campus, located 18 miles northwest of Portland and just two hours from Boston, encompasses 350 acres along the shore of beautiful Sebago Lake in Standish, Maine. Enrollment ranges between 1,000 and 1,100 students annually. Saint Joseph's offers challenging academic programs in the liberal arts and sciences, education, nursing and business fields in a value-centered environment.