Field Hockey Edged 3-2 By No. 18 Maine on Senior Day

Sunday, November 1

Durham, N.H.

1 PM

University of New Hampshire

(8-10,4-4AE)

University of Maine

(17-3, 7-1AE)

Maine

New Hampshire

11/1/2015 6:06:00 PM | Field Hockey

Box Score

DURHAM, N.H. – Senior forward Meg Flatley (Townsend, Mass.) scored two goals on Senior Day, but the University of New Hampshire field hockey team was upended 3-2 by 18^th-ranked University of Maine at Memorial Field on Sunday afternoon.

UNH ends the regular season at 8-10 overall and 4-4 in America East. The Wildcats are the East No. 3 seed and will play West No. 2 seed University of the Pacific in a Nov. 6 quarterfinal at the University at Albany; game time is 2 p.m.

Maine enters the America East tourney with a 17-3 overall record and claimed a share of the East division title with a 7-1 conference mark. The Black Bears recorded a 13-10 shot advantage, including 7-3 in the first half. UNH had a 9-5 edge in penalty corners with a 6-3 margin in the second half.

Flatley scored her 50^th and 51^st career goals to climb into a tie for No. 4 on UNH's career leadboard with Hayley Rausch. Flatley is No. 5 in career points with 118. Melissa Rize (Severn, Md.) made seven saves. Katie Audino (Severn, Md.) and Meg Carroll (Mansfield, Mass.) were credited with assists.

Danielle Aviani, Marissa Shaw and Sydney Veljacic scored for Maine. Emma Cochran, who entered the game in goal at the start of the second half, stopped two of three shots on goal and was credited with the win. Emily Corbett also recorded two saves and allowed one goal.

The Wildcats quickly took a 1-0 lead 53 seconds into the game when Audino drove the end line and found Flatley cutting toward the cage.

Nicole Sevey's long hit from outside the 25 was allowed to go into the cage by Rize at 1:27 and was initially called no goal. After conferring, the officials overturned the call to a goal. The officials had a second conference and returned to the original ruling of no goal.

Aviani carried the ball into the left side and her shot from seven yards was kicked out by Rize. One minute later, Jessica Skillings redirected a shot on goal from the middle of the circle, but Rize blocked away the ball with her leg pads.

UNH generated a corner in the 16^th minute and the Lynne Lehman (Landisburg, Pa.) insert went to the top left, where Lindsey Nerbonne (Bow, N.H.) blasted a low shot that Corbett stopped with her right leg pad.

Maine did tie the score, 1-1, off a penalty corner at 26:06. Rize made the initial save on Samantha Wagg's direct shot, but Veljacic corralled the rebound in the middle of the circle and sent a shot that hit Rize and trickled inside the left post.

With just over one minute remaining in the first half, Gianna Bensaia (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) carried the ball into the circle on the right wing but her low blast was kicked out by Corbett. UNH had an untimed penalty corner at the end of the half but direct shot hit an attacking player's leg to end the play.

The Black Bears took a 2-1 lead at 48:42 when Cassidy Svetek drove the ball along the left end line and sent a pass to the doorstep, where Aviani jammed a shot into the cage.

UNH called time out at 51:20 and responded with an equalizing goal at 53:40. Nerbonne's entry pass from the middle found Carroll on the top-left side. With Cochran coming out from the goalmouth to challenge, Carroll fired a low blast that Flatley redirected into the cage.

In the 55^th minute, Flatley utilized her speed to race past the defense and rifle a shot from the top-right that Cochran stopped, but the rebound deflected high into Nerbonne to give the Wildcats a penalty corner. Cochran then stopped Nerbonne's shot from the top of the circle, but the 'Cats earned another corner. This time, a shot off the stick of Jackie Hozza (Sinking Spring, Pa.) was blocked by a defender. On a third corner, the defense once again blocked Hozza's shot.

Shaw gained possession behind UNH's defense at the 25 and advanced to the top of the circle. Rize charged to challenge and made a leg-pad save to keep the scored tied 2-2 with 12:15 remaining.

The Black Bears converted another corner into the game-winning goal at 62:02. A series of passes moved the ball to Katie Bingle, whose shot from the middle of the circle hit Rize but continued toward the goalmouth and Shaw pushed the ball into the open cage.

New Hampshire pulled Rize in favor of a kicking back at that time. The Wildcats were able to control possession, but Maine's defense kept the 'Cats out of the circle until they gained a corner with 90 seconds to play. UNH didn't execute on the insert, however, and an infraction gave possession to the Black Bears. Maine advanced the ball to the opposite corner of the field. The Wildcats got the ball back in the waning seconds, but time expired as Flatley was racing across the midfield line.

In addition to Carroll, Flatley and Lehman, Emma Compagna (Canton, Mass.), Chandler Giese (Trappe, Pa.) and Taylor Rideout (Barrington, R.I) were honored in a Senior Day pre-game ceremony.

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