STANDISH, ME – Saint Joseph's (12-4, 4-2 GNAC) blanked University of Southern Maine (0-12, 0-3 LEC), 3-0 (25-5, 25-12, 25-9), in a non-conference volleyball match at the Harold Alfond Center on Thursday evening. Brooke Dyer '14 (Lebanon, Maine/St. Thomas Aquinas) notched a match-best nine digs in the victory.

The Monks cruised through the first set with the help of a .500 hitting percentage while the Huskies posted five attack errors with no kills in the first frame. St. Joe's held a 6-1 advantage early in the second set before USM senior middle blocker Hannah Patterson (Londonderry, N.H.) belted three straight kills as part of a 4-0 run to cut the visitor's deficit to 6-5.

Saint Joseph's staved off the threat by way of four consecutive kills from sophomore Kristin Palladino (Exeter, N.H.), who later belted an ace to provide the hosts with their 25th point.

The Monks raced out to a 4-0 lead in the third set, but the Huskies answered with five unanswered points to secure their first lead of the evening. St. Joe's responded with six straight points and closed out the match victory with a 25-9 triumph in the third set.

Junior middle blocker Sarah Hawkes (Pownal, Maine) tallied 11 digs, five service aces and three kills and broke the Monks' career digs record kills in the sweep. With her 10th dig of the evening the junior surpassed Helene Liaci '05, who recorded 718 digs in 87 matches and 380 matches over four seasons. Hawkes, who broke the SJC career kills record last Saturday and is just four solo blocks from claiming the program's stuffs record, now has 720 digs in 77 matches and 261 sets in three-plus campaigns.

For the Monks, Kiah Begley '13 (Berwick, Maine/St. Thomas Aquinas) tallied 23 assists, four kills, four digs and three aces, Emilee Penman '15 (Uncasville, Conn.) chipped in with four kills and nine digs, and Holly Bannister '14 (Cumberland, Maine) added five kills in the victory.

For the Huskies, Madalyn Terry '14 (Kennebunkport, Maine) had six digs and four assists while Annie Mitchell '14 (Gorham, Maine) and Alysse Tasse '14 (Gilmanton, N.H.) recorded two kills apiece in a losing effort.

Saint Joseph's held commanding advantages in attack percentage (.286- -.179) kills (29-6), assists (27-6), aces (21-3) and digs (42-22) on the evening. The Monks, off to a 12-4 start for the first time since the 1996 season, have now defeated the Huskies in five consecutive meetings.

Saint Joseph's will travel to Emmanuel College for a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tri-match with Rivier College on Saturday. St. Joe's plays Emmanuel at 12:00 PM and Rivier at 2:00 PM. Southern Maine hosts University of Maine-Fort Kent on Saturday at 12:00 PM.