STANDISH, Maine – Senior Kienna Haley (Scarborough, Maine) scored with 1:53 left in the first overtime period to propel Saint Joseph's College (8-5, 7-1 GNAC) past Colby-Sawyer College (7-5, 5-2 GNAC), 2-1, in a hotly-contested Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) field hockey contest at the SJC Athletics Complex on Saturday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
After a scoreless opening quarter, the Monks broke through early in the second when senior Maya Waryas (Bellows Falls, Vt.) capitalized on a penalty corner, blasting home a feed from Zoey Lailer (Limington, Maine) to put the hosts on top, 1-0.
The Chargers answered after the break, applying steady pressure that culminated in the 42nd minute when junior Abby Olden (Belchertown, Mass.) buried a rebound inside a crowded goalmouth to even the score at 1-1.
Neither side could find the go-ahead tally through the remainder of regulation, sending the conference clash into golden-goal overtime, which features 7v7 play. After a quiet opening stretch, the Monks delivered the decisive strike when senior Kienna Haley (Scarborough, Maine) one-timed a right-to-left cross from sophomore Katie Yeaton (Farmington, Maine), who created the chance with a long breakaway from midfield.
TEAM STATS:
Colby-Sawyer held the lead in shots (13-11) and shots on goal (10-9) while the Monks posted an 11-7 advantage in penalty corners.
THE KEEPERS:
SJC junior goalie Kimberley McLaughlin (Lewiston, Maine) made seven stops while seniors Sadie Tirrell (Naples, Maine) and Chloe Grosso (Westbrook, Maine) notched a defensive save apiece in the victory. Colby-Sawyer sophomore netminder Ashlee Blashock (Lebanon, N.H.) turned away seven shots in a losing effort.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
With the victory, Saint Joseph's improves to 9-2 in the history of the series with Colby-Sawyer College. The GNAC counterparts split a pair of contests - both played in New London - last fall, as the Chargers tipped the Monks by a 3-2 score in OT during the regular season and SJC defeated CSC in a GNAC Tournament quarterfinal, 2-1.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's will host Husson University on Wednesday in a non-conference matchup set to start at 4:30 PM.