PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Freshman Karissa Boesch (Eliot, Maine) scored the first two goals of her collegiate career to help propel Saint Joseph's College (11-1, 5-0 GNAC) past Johnson & Wales University (9-6, 3-2 GNAC), 3-1, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) field hockey action on Saturday afternoon. Saint Joseph's has now won a program-record nine-consecutive games with the team's last loss being a 2-1 setback – in overtime – at the hands of Kean University on September 14th.

The Monks grabbed an early lead when freshman defender Hayley Winslow (Falmouth, Maine) scored following a scrum in front of Wildcats senior keeper Jaclyn Lyons (Hillsborough, N.J.) just 5:06 into play. Senior forward Effie Drew (Portland, Maine) was credited with an assist on the score.

Boesch doubled the visitors' lead with her first NCAA goal just over 20 minutes later. Stationed in the box, the rookie forward took a pass from senior Theresa Hendrix (Scarborough, Maine/Cheverus) and slapped a shot into the cage under the legs of Lyons.

The two-goal cushion remained until 1:31 had elapsed in the second stanza, when JWU first year Shaina Thompson (Delmar, Del.) received a pass from outside the circle and redirected the ball past SJC keeper Emma Astbury (Bridgewater, Vt.), cutting the Monks' lead to 2-1.

Both teams had chances to score over the following 15 minutes, but the Monks managed to put the game out of reach when Boesch potted her second tally of the afternoon off a nice crossing pass from classmate Bailey Cutler (Lisbon Falls, Maine) at the 54:09 mark.

The Wildcats applied plenty of offensive pressure in the final 10 minutes in attempt to close the scoring gap and earned a pair of penalty corners, but the plays yielded just one shot, which was stopped by Astbury in the 64th minute.

Overall, Saint Joseph's held a 17-6 advantage in shots while both teams tallied 10 penalty corner attempts in the conference contest. Astbury made four saves in the victory, while Lyons recorded five stops in the first half and freshman netminder Shannon Yoder (Boyertown, Pa.) added three saves in the second stanza for the Wildcats.

Saint Joseph's returns to play tomorrow with a home game versus Rhodes College at 1:00 PM. Johnson & Wales hosts Wheelock College at 7:00 PM on Thursday.

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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 430-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.