PORTLAND, Maine –Simmons College (4-5, 3-1 GNAC) scored five consecutive goals to start the second half to defeat Saint Joseph's College (3-3, 2-2 GNAC) by a 14-11 margin in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's lacrosse contest at Deering Memorial Stadium on Friday night.

The Monks were in a deep hole early as the visiting Sharks rattled off five unanswered goals over the first 13 minutes of play. St. Joe's fought back however, outscoring Simmons by an 8-2 margin for the remainder of the opening period en route to securing an 8-7 edge heading into intermission.

Unfortunately for the Royal Blue, the Sharks opened the second stanza in an eerily similar fashion as the visitors employed in the first – by scoring five straight – and held a 12-8 lead with 18:50 to play. St. Joe's freshman Haley Nordmann (Springvale, Maine) attempted to spark the Monks when she netted her first collegiate goal at the 12:50 mark, but Simmons countered by scoring twice in the next nine minutes to diminish the hosts' hopes of a comeback.

For the Monks, senior midfielder Amelia Santos (Beverly, Mass.) recorded four goals and an assist, freshman midfielder Kirstin McCombs (Lewiston, Maine) tallied three goals and a game-high six ground balls, sophomore attacker Cassie Diplock (Augusta, Maine) added two goals, an assist, four ground balls and three caused turnovers, and sophomore midfielder Anneka Adame (San Diego, Calif.) chipped in with a goal, an assist, five ground balls and four draw controls on the night.

For the Sharks, Lee Sutherland (Tuftonboro, N.H.) and Callie Warnock (Kingston, Mass.) netted three goals apiece while Mary Essa (Las Vegas, Nev.) and Meaghan Maurice (Portland, Maine) produced two markers each in the conference victory.

SJC sophomore netminder Elizabeth Giacchino (Melrose, Mass.) tallied five saves in a losing effort while her counterpart, Simmons keeper Kelly Last (West Haven, Conn.), recorded 14 stops for the visitors.

With the result, Saint Joseph's falls to 2-2 in the history of the series with Simmons College. The Monks will host Emmanuel College at Deering Memorial Stadium on Tuesday night. The GNAC contest is scheduled to begin at 7:30 PM. The Sharks return to the field on Tuesday, April 3 at 4:30 p.m. at Mount Ida College in GNAC conference action.