MERION STATION, Pa. – The Saint Joseph's field hockey team locked up its third consecutive outright Atlantic 10 regular season title on Friday as the Hawks flew past La Salle, 7-1, on a cold and cloudy Friday afternoon at Ellen Ryan Field.  Senior Anna Willocks and sophomore Sara Hayes each scored twice on the day.

The title is the fourth regular season crown for the 12th-ranked Hawks, as SJU won its first in 1995 before claiming the 2016 and 2017 championships.  It is the third time the Hawks have posted an unbeaten conference record after going 4-0 in 1995 and 8-0 in 2016.

Freshman Tonya Botherway got Saint Joseph's (15-2 overall, 8-0 Atlantic 10) on the scoreboard early, taking a pass from senior Joely Helder and depositing it in the cage for her 18th goal of the season and a 1-0 SJU lead just 2:32 into the contest.

Hayes would tally twice in a two-and-a-half minute span later in the frame.  After her pass hit the foot of a La Salle player in the circle, Hayes made good on an advantage call by beating Emelynn Sneary to double the lead with 9:18 to go in the half.  Junior Kayla Walker then picked up her own rebound and fed it to Hayes for a 3-0 lead at the 6:42 mark.

La Salle (8-9 overall, 2-5 Atlantic 10) broke through with 2:28 to play, as Rialee Allen found Mackenzie Karcher in the circle, and her shot found the cage to send the game to halftime at 3-1.

The Hawks put together an even more dominant second half, holding the Explorers without a shot while taking 17 of their own.  Senior Monica Tice notched her second goal of the season in the 42nd minute to restore the three-goal lead before Willocks put the game well out of reach with her 14th and 15th of the year.

After a scrum in front of the cage in the 49th minute, Willocks found a loose ball and dove to the turf to send it on frame; the ball snuck under an outstretched Sneary and in for a 5-1 lead.  Then, with 4:28 to play, Sneary made back-to-back saves on sophomore Emily Peters, but Willocks would not be denied from the doorstep, extending the margin to 6-1.

Sophomore Jordan Olenginski set the final margin with zeroes on the clock; after inserting a penalty corner with no time remaining, Olenginski took a feed at the post from freshman Johanna Huse and finished the win off with her third goal of the season.

Sneary made 14 saves in the game for La Salle, while junior Victoria Kammerinke made a pair of first-half saves for the Hawks.  Saint Joseph's outshot La Salle 28-5 for the day, while the Hawks earned seven penalty corners to just one for the Explorers.

The Hawks will close out the regular season on Saturday when #14 Syracuse visits Hawk Hill.  Game time is set for 3:00 p.m.; prior to the start of the game, Saint Joseph's will honor its graduating seniors – Helder, Tice, and Willocks – for their contributions to the program.