GORHAM, Maine – Entering the second half tied at one, the University of Southern Maine scored three unanswered goals to pull away and defeat the University of Maine at Farmington, 4-1, in non-conference field hockey action on Tuesday afternoon.
The Records:
The setback for the Beavers dropped them to 3-9 on the season, while the victory for Southern Maine improved the Huskies to 6-6 overall.
How It Happened:
The Huskies' offense came out of the gates quickly, putting substantial pressure on the Beavers and senior goalkeeper Ella Grant (Sturbridge, Mass.). In the opening quarter, the Huskies tallied 12 shots and five penalty corners. Grant was phenomenal, turning away the first ten shots she faced.
Southern Maine finally broke through in the 13th minute when HJ Tuplin hammered home a rebound off a shot from Eliza Rogers that Grant had initially turned aside.
The Beavers wasted no time tying the score, as Gabby Vincentsen (Bristol, Maine) notched her fourth goal of the season just one minute and eight seconds later. After earning their first penalty corner of the game, Vincentsen inserted the ball to Ruby Taylor (Poland, Maine), who quickly moved it to Zoey Pennell (Saco, Maine). Pennell slapped a shot toward goal that was deflected twice before finding its way to Vincentsen, who muscled home a shot past a Huskies defender stationed on the left post.
After a relatively quiet second quarter, the pace picked up again in the third. The Huskies regained the lead in the opening three minutes of the period—once again courtesy of Tuplin. Bri Townsend was credited with the assist on Tuplin's go-ahead goal.
Southern Maine extended its lead just a minute later, this time with Tuplin picking up an assist on a goal from Townsend. A quick counterattack from the Huskies ended with the ball on Townsend's stick, as she carried it around a Beaver defender in front of the goal before sliding a shot past Grant.
The Huskies added an insurance goal in the fourth quarter when Townsend scored her second of the game. The goal came off a penalty corner, with Jaigan Boudreau inserting it directly to Townsend. Townsend then lofted a high shot over the heads of the Beaver defense and Grant, finding the back of the cage to make it 4-1 and complete the scoring.
Junior defender Lindsay Boisvert (Westbrook, Maine) had a strong game for the Beavers, recording a pair of defensive saves.
Stats of the Game:
- Shots: Southern Maine 24, Farmington 4
- Shots on Goal: Southern Maine 19, Farmington 4
- Penalty Corners: Southern Maine 11, Farmington 1
The Goalkeepers:
Grant had a brilliant game in goal for the Beavers, recording 13 saves to keep the game close throughout. Eleanor Folsom got the start in goal for the Huskies, playing the first three quarters and making two saves. Sunny Bache made one save in the fourth quarter.
UP NEXT
The Beavers return to action on Saturday, October 18, in Central Maine Collegiate Field Hockey Conference play on the road against Husson University.
