WENHAM, Mass. – After a slow start, the Saint Joseph's College of Maine women's lacrosse team took control and never looked back, storming past Gordon College 16-7 on Friday afternoon. The Monks overcame an early 5-3 deficit, outscoring the Fighting Scots 13-2 over the final three quarters to secure their fourth win of the season. With the win, Saint Joseph's improves to 4-3, while Gordon falls to 1-6.

Gordon came out strong, building a 4-1 lead midway through the first quarter.opening the scoring at 12:17, striking three times—including a man-up goal—to give the Fighting Scots early momentum. Saint Joseph's kept pace with goals from Mackenzie Siebert (Naples, ME), Dinah Wadleigh (Augusta, ME), and Celia Melanson (Waterford, ME), but Mini's fourth goal of the quarter gave Gordon a 5-3 edge heading into the second.

Saint Joseph's dominated the second quarter, scoring five unanswered goals to take an 8-5 lead into halftime. Shauna Clark (Oakland, ME), Sophia Burton (Westtown, NY), and Melanson struck in quick succession to put the Monks in front for good. The team capitalized on Gordon's penalties, with Taylor Dumond (Minisink, NY) adding a man-up goal late in the period.

Saint Joseph's kept rolling in the third quarter, outscoring Gordon 5-2. Dumond notched another man-up goal, while Mini tallied two more for the Fighting Scots. By the end of the period, the Monks had extended their lead to 13-7.

The final frame was all defense for Saint Joseph's, shutting out Gordon while adding three more goals from Ella Highbarger (Kennebunk, ME), Melanson, and Clark to seal the 16-7 victory.

The Monks dominated the stat sheet, outshooting Gordon 49-18, collecting 37 ground balls to the Scots' 22, and forcing 38 turnovers while committing just 17.

Leaders-Saint Joseph's:

• Celia Melanson led all scorers with nine points (6G, 3A), including two key third-quarter goals
• Shauna Clark recorded two goals, two assists, seven ground balls, and five caused turnovers
• Taylor Dumond  netted three goals, including two man-up scores that shifted momentum in the Monks' favor
• Ella Highbarger controlled six draws, caused three turnovers, and chipped in a goal
• Dinah Wadleigh  added a goal while collecting five ground balls and forcing four turnovers
• Julia Price (Newbury, MA) earned the win, making three saves in 45 minutes after replacing Morgan Wright (Chelmsford, MA), who started but didn't record a save

Leaders-Gordon:

• Kaitlyn Mini scored six of Gordon's seven goals and grabbed three draw controls
• Marializ Lopez tallied a goal while adding two ground balls and two caused turnovers
• Emma Darling and Sophia Tomassoni led Gordon's defensive efforts with five ground balls each
• Kayla Davidson was busy all game, stopping 22 shots despite allowing 16 goals

NEXT!

The Monks are back in action against Elms at home on Saturday.