WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Saint Joseph soccer team scored with 1:32 left to play to break a two-all tie and hung on for a 3-2 victory over visiting Simmons College this afternoon in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference season opener in West Hartford, Conn. The Sharks fall to 1-3-2 overall and 0-1-0 in GNAC play, while the Blue Jays improve to 3-2-0 and 1-0-0.

Sara Barnick (Watertown, Conn.) tallied the deciding goal when Katie Mirabella (Seymour, Conn.) found her with a cross-field pass that she carried to the upper left corner of the box and put a low shot in the right corner of the net.

Simmons led twice in the match, including a 1-0 edge at halftime after an unassisted goal at 31:30 from junior forward Greer Gilbert (Falmouth, Mass.) for her second tally of the season.

Fourteen minutes into the second half, Emily Burke (Windsor Locks, Conn.) got Saint Joseph on the board when she flashed into the box on a Mirabella corner kick and headed in the equalizer.

The Sharks re-took the lead when Gilbert fed first year forward Erin Montambault (Watertown, Conn.) for her team-leading fourth goal of the year and a 2-1 game in the 68th minute. Again the Blue Jays tied it, this time on an unassisted goal by Jess Salztman (Bedford, N.H.) with 9:38 play to set the stage for the final tally.

Simmons outshot the Blue Jays, 24-10, and had a 10-3 advantage in corner kicks.

Junior goalie Briana Hayes (Manorville, N.Y.) made five saves for the Sharks, while Saint Joseph keeper Ashley Hebert (Wolcott, Conn.) made a career-high 15 saves to earn the victory.

Simmons returns to play on Wednesday, September 17 when it hosts Lesley University on Winsor Field at 7:30 p.m. The Blue Jays will play again on September 16 at 4:00 p.m., hosting Connecticut College.