Worcester, Mass. – Host Clark University got a goal and an assist from Mel Melkonian (Worcester, Mass.) and the Cougars secured a much-needed 2-0 win over cross-town rival WPI on Saturday afternoon in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) field hockey action.

With the win Clark improves to 8-5 overall and 1-4 in league play, while the Engineers slip to 5-8 and 2-4 in conference action.

Neither team had any great scoring chances until midway through the first half when Melkonian converted an unassisted goal after shaking free from a defender and firing a blast that banged the back of the cage at 29:54.

The Engineers had a couple of chances early in the second half, most notably in the 51st minute when Megan Read (Wrentham, Mass.) had both of her point blank opportunities turned back by Jordannah Saunders (Scarborough, Maine).

With the score still 1-0, Clark got an insurance score when a rocket off of the stick of Melkonian was deflected past WPI netminder Liz Dufresne (Worcester, Mass.) by Kiah Murphy (Westport, Mass.) for her first collegiate goal at 58:21.

WPI made a final push down the stretch but shots by both Amy Misera (Hunt Valley, Md.) and Mary-Lee Barboza (Rochester, Mass.) were sent back by Saunders in the 62nd and 63rd minutes, respectively.

The Engineers actually held a 13-9 edge in shots and a 12-9 advantage in penalty corners.

Saunders recorded her second career shutout and made seven saves in the win, while Dufresne stopped five of her own.

Both teams return to action on Tuesday with NEWMAC contests. Clark plays host to Mount Holyoke, while the Engineers travel to Smith College.