ORONO, Maine – In the sixth minute of the second overtime period,
Brianna Ricker made a move past the diving UAlbany goalkeeper, before depositing a shot into the net to give No. 18 Maine a 2-1 victory over the No. 22 Great Danes on Sunday afternoon at the UMaine Field Hockey Complex.
Ricker's second goal of the season ended a thrilling back-and-forth defensive battle that featured 20 shots on goal with just three goals scored in total.
Libby Riedl tied the contest at 1-1 for the Black Bears (9-2, 1-1 America East) in the 55
th minute for her 10
th goal of the season. Dana Bozek scored the lone goal of the game for the Great Danes (7-3, 1-1 America East) in the eighth minute.
On her birthday,
Mia Borley made a career-high eight saves in the cage for the Black Bears. Melissa Nealon tallied eight stops in an impressive performance in the loss for the Great Danes. Both goalkeepers extended the game with crucial saves down the stretch.
MAINE GAME NOTES AND HIGHLIGHTS
- Maine led in shots (17-12) and in penalty corners (10-6).
- Riedl's goal in the second half put her at 101 career points through 72 games as a Black Bear.
- The win marked Maine's third victory in four games over a ranked opponent this season.
- Maine had a penalty stroke with just 1:10 remaining in the second half, but Nealon denied Samantha Wagg's shot to force overtime.
- Borley's eight saves is the most for a Black Bear goalkeeper since Emma Cochran tallied nine against New Hampshire on 10/29/17.
- The Great Danes now lead the all-time series by just a mark of 16-11.
- Maine is now 2-0 in overtime games this season after defeating No. 24 Ohio State 2-1 earlier this season. The win was the Black Bears' sixth-straight win in overtime, last falling in an extra period on 9/9/16 at Boston University.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- 8:22 | Bozek settled the insertion from Viola Von der Muhlen, and then lasered a shot to the left of the Maine goalkeeper.
- 55:25 | Brittany Smith settled the insertion from Emily Hindle, as she passed to Riedl. Riedl made a move to the left past two Great Dane defenders, before shooting to the low right into the back of the net.
- 83:20 | Ricker took possession and ran three quarters of the field and deked past the goalkeeper, before firing in the shot in the open net.
UP NEXT
- Maine is off from game action for a week, returning to action on Sunday, Oct. 7 at Vermont. Game time is set for 1:00 p.m. The Black Bears return home on Tues. Oct. 9 for one last non-conference bout against Dartmouth.
-UMaine-
