ORONO, Maine – Kayla Brace converted a penalty kick in the first half and Kendra Ridley scored off a corner in the second half to lead the University of Maine soccer team to a 2-1 win over Marist on Sunday afternoon at Mahaney Diamond.
 
The Black Bears (2-4-1) took the lead on Brace's second goal of the year in the ninth minute and continued to carry the momentum for much of the first half. The UMaine offense displayed crisp passes and patience in moving the ball the width of the field.
 
After Marist (3-4-0) had tied the game on a jumbled play in the waning minutes of the first half, it took another 30 minutes for another goal to come. But with the goal, Ridley earned her first career game-winning goal and the 2-1 win for the Black Bears.
 
In goal, Annalena Kriebisch (2-4-1) made four saves and had a daring play in the final two minutes when she charged the ball and slide at the left side of the six to negate the Red Foxes' chance at a game-tying goal. At the other end of the field, Makala Foley (3-4-0) and Ashley Houghton each played one half with neither making a save.
 
Brace now leads the Black Bears with two goals and one assist for five points while Ridley has the first point-streak of her career at two games.
 
Marist held the final edge in shots (14-6) and corner kicks (6-2).
 
Goal Recaps
• (Maine 9'): After Nicole Bailey ran down a ball over the top and carried it down the right wing and into the box, she was taken down by a charging Ashley Houghton. Brace then stepped up to the spot and calmly slotted the ball inside the right post.
• (Marist 42'): Kriebisch made the initial diving save on close-range shot from Alexa Svensson at the right post but the rebounded ball bounced to the center of the goal mouth where Nicole Sasso was able to knock it into the net.
• (Maine 72'): Fresh into the game, Messer floated a ball from the left corner flag into the middle of the six. Ridley timed her short, curled run perfectly to lose her marker and one touched the ball with her left foot to the right post.
 
Notes
• After tallying just two points on one goal during her first three years, Ridey now has three points in the last two games with one goal and one assist.
• The penalty kick goal from Brace was the first for UMaine since Charlene Achille converted from the spot in a 1-0 win over UMBC on Oct. 11, 2015.
• It was the ninth-straight win in the series for UMaine and gives the Black Bears an all-time record of 9-1-0 against Marist.
• Head coach Scott Atherley – who got his first career win at the helm of the women's squad against Marist on Sept. 12, 1999 – got his 145^th career win with the victory.
• The Black Bears have outscored the Red Foxes 27-4 in the series and have only allowed one goal in the past five meetings.
 
Up Next
• The Black Bears will travel to Cornell on Saturday, Sept. 16 to battle the Big Red in the final non-conference contest of the season.
• UMaine will then return home to kick off America East action against Stony Brook on Sunday, Sept. 24 before traveling to Hartford on Thursday, Sept. 28.

-UMaine-