BOSTON, Mass. – Junior forward Julie Saltamartini (East Hampstead, N.H.) scored three times to lead the Simmons College field hockey team over visiting Mount Ida College this afternoon in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference match at Daly Field in Brighton, Mass. The Sharks win their fourth straight to improve to 4-2 overall and 1-0 in league play, while the Mustangs fall to 3-4 and 0-2.
Simmons dominated the action, owning a 27-0 shot advantage and a 25-0 margin on penalty corners.
Saltamartini's hat trick was her third multi-goal effort of the season for the Sharks and her second match with at least three goals. Senior forward Mary Neidhardt (Middlefield, Conn.) tallied a pair of goals, while classmate Madeline Koufos (Needham, Mass.) tallied her first marker of the season. Sophomore midfielder Ana Giarrusso (Hingham, Mass.) also contributed with a pair of assists.
Senior goalies Brianna Rastello (Salem, N.H.) (57:22) and Hope McDonald (Hingham, Mass.) (12:38) were both untested in the combined shutout for Simmons.
First year keeper Grace Ryan (Livermore Falls, Maine) stopped 13 shots in 57:22 of action for Mount Ida, before rookie goalie Jessica Henry (Wilbraham, Mass.) made a save in the final 12:38 of play.
The contest was scoreless through the first 31-plus minutes of action, before senior forward Jenna Gagnon (Waterville, Maine) sent a centering cross to Neidhardt in front of the cage for her first goal of the year coming with 3:50 left in the opening half. The score was the only goal of the half for the Sharks, before they broke out for five markers in the second stanza.
Giarrusso found Koufos with a centering pass from inside the circle, on the right side, for her first tally of the year just 1:27 into the half for Simmons. Giarrusso continued her generous play with a cross to Saltamartini at the right post for a tip-in and a 3-0 Sharks' lead with 26:14 left in the match. Saltamartini struck again less than five minutes later when she collected a rebound off a shot from Giarrusso and scored to make it 4-0 for the home team.
Simmons tacked on a fifth goal when first year forward Lindsey Chase (Melrose, Mass.) blasted a shot from the top of the circle that Neidhardt re-directed into the back of the cage for her second goal of the day and season with 14:27 remaining in the game. Saltamartini capped the scoring, with 2:11 to go, when first year midfielder Hannah Scott (Claremont, N.H.) found her with a cross to the right slot for a shot into the left side of the cage.
The Sharks return to action when they head to Norton, Mass. on Tuesday, September 20 for a 7:00 p.m. match at Wheaton College, while the Mustangs host Bay Path College on September 19 at 7:00 p.m.