The Massachusetts women’s lacrosse team defeated Saint Joseph’s with the help of its strong defense at Garber Field on Saturday afternoon.

The Minutewomen’s (14-2, 8-0 Atlantic 10) defense set the tone early, leaving little to no space for the Hawks (10-6, 6-2 A-10) to shoot. UMass’ physicality was on display early in the first quarter as Hannah Heller received a two-minute penalty and Amy Moreau stick checked a Saint Joseph’s defender, forcing a Hawks turnover.

UMass worked to run out the penalty clock by passing the ball back and forth. Kendra Harbinger earned a free position shot after getting pushed at the crease and capitalized on the opportunity, giving the Minutewomen a 3-1 lead.

The Hawks earned the first goal of the third quarter which jump started its aggressive play in the second half. Olivia Muscella attempted to get around Saint Joseph’s defense until she was pushed to the ground. Muscella was given the eight-meter opportunity where she continued the play but was immediately shoved to the ground from behind for a second time.

Before scoring the 10th goal for UMass, Kelly Marra went to ground directly at the eight-meter line right as she tried to shoot. She took a hard jab step to score the 10th goal from the ensuing free position shot. Marra went on to score five out of the 14 goals for the Minutwomen, with three of them coming in the fourth quarter.

Despite Saint Joseph’s efforts, the Hawks only scored two more goals by the end of the third quarter. Goalkeeper Gina Carroll made several impressive saves throughout the game for UMass. In the third quarter, on the Hawks’ fourth shot attempt, Carroll made a diving save, blocking the ball as it nearly bounced into the bottom corner of the net.

Saint Joseph’s came out of the third intermission energized, however. Maddie Yoder ran down the field and rifled a left-handed shot into the back of the net 25 seconds into the fourth quarter.

After the seventh goal for the Hawks rolled into the net, UMass took possession of the ball and Harbinger sprinted down the field. Alex Finn received the ball from Harbinger and with no clear angle to shoot, held up play behind the net. Finn then quickly ran around the crease and took the chance herself, converting UMass’ 14th and final goal of the afternoon.

The Hawks drew control with nine seconds left in the game, down 14-8, and took a shot on net, forcing a trivial save from Carroll as time expired.

The Minutewomen will play their final game of the regular season against Davidson on April 23 at 1 p.m.