September 8, 2011

WATERVILLE, ME – Saint Joseph's (1-1) defeated Thomas College (0-3) by a 2-1 margin in a non-conference women's soccer match on Thursday afternoon. Sophomores Kelsea Marchand (Boscawen, N.H.) and Emily Cocciardi (Middletown, Mass.) recorded the Monks' goals in the victory.

The Terriers struck first when they notched their first goal of the season, a ninth-minute marker off the foot of first-year midfielder Kristi Hilton (Monmouth, Maine). The Terriers' first tally of the year was not enough to keep the Monks at bay however, as the Royal Blue netted a pair of unanswered goals to clinch the win.

Hilton scored her first collegiate goal at the 8:05 mark off of a pass from fellow first year Mary Grace Morris (Fort Kent, Maine). Marchand scored the game-tying goal just over ten minutes later when the second-year midfielder hit pay dirt after being sprung loose on a breakaway. The goal was the first of Marchand's NCAA career.

Despite a strong attack from St. Joe's the score remained 1-1 going in the break.

Saint Joseph's finally broke the tie in the 65th minute when Cocciardi connected from 15 yards out off a Danielle Daigle '15 (Dayton, Maine) dish. The goal was the second of Cocciardi's collegiate career and her first game-winner.

The Monks continued with a strong attack for the remainder of the game taking 12 shots, with four finding the target. Terriers senior defender Victoria Devonshire helped slow the SJC offense with explosive play on the hosts' defensive half.

Thomas netminder Kate Thibodeau '14 (Woolwich, Maine) made two saves in a losing effort while SJC keeper Jaci Lorenzen '14 (Windham, Maine) earned the victory despite logging 90 minutes without a save.

St. Joe's dominated Thomas in shots (12-2) and corner kicks (6-0) en route to the non-conference victory. With the triumph Saint Joseph's improves to 31-6 in the history of the series with the Terriers. 

The Monks have now defeated the Terriers in 16 consecutive meetings dating back to the 1998 campaign. For the women's soccer program, the win streak ranks as the second-longest versus an opponent and is the longest active stretch over an opposing side. The Monks recorded a 28-game winning streak over Husson – a run that spanned 14 seasons (1988-2001).

Saint Joseph's will host Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) rival Norwich University on Saturday at 3:00 PM while Thomas is set to entertain Maine-Machias at 2:00 PM on Sunday.