Box Score GORHAM, Maine - Junior Rachel Kennedy (Trumbull, Conn./Westminster School) scored a pair of goals to lead a potent offense as the no. 2 ranked Bowdoin College Polar Bears overcame a sluggish start to defeat the University of Southern Maine Huskies in a non-conference field hockey game Thursday afternoon at Hannaford Field.
Bowdoin, the defending NCAA Division III National Champions, move to 10-1 on the season earning its fourth consecutive win. The win also marked the Polar Bears eighth victory by shutout. The loss is the third straight for Southern Maine dropping its record to 6-9.
Unable to settle into play, Bowdoin's bench called a time out midway through the 11th minute sparking the Polar Bears into action as less than 30 seconds following the restart Bowdoin rattled off its first goal to take the lead. Sophomore Kimmy Ganong (Boston, Mass./Noble & Greenough) scored her sixth goal of the season at the 11:49 mark.
The Huskies' immediately countered Ganong's score with a breakaway attempt from Peyton Dostie (Standish, Maine/Bonny Eagle). Dostie won the ball at half field and used her speed to break through the Bowdoin defense. Polar Bear goalkeeper Hanna Gartner closed down the space on Dostie and her shot narrowly missed wide of the cage. After the Dostie scare, Bowdoin turned up the offensive pressure peppering the Huskies' defense with shots. Huskies' sophomore goalkeeper Amanda Kasbohm (York, Maine) kept the score held at 1-0 making several close range saves.
Kennedy broke through for the first of her two goals in the 25th minute collecting a loose ball in front of the cage off of an initial save to make it 2-0 and then notched her team-leading 14th goal of the season in the 32nd minute. Kennedy beat Kasbohm to the near-post after receiving a centering pass from senior Emily Simonton (Kennett Square, Pa./Sanford School). The Polar Bears made it 4-0 just before the break when junior Liz Znamierowski (Richmond, Vt./Mt. Mansfield Union) scored her third goal of the season in the 33rd minute with a hard struck shot from near the top of the circle.
With a 4-0 lead in hand at the end of the break, Bowdoin made it 6-0 in the opening 10 minutes of the second half. Sophomore Mettler Growney (New Caanan, Conn./Deerfield Academy) snuck a ball through traffic in the 38th minute for her first goal of the season and senior Pam Herter (Topsfield, Mass./Masconomet Regional) converted a penalty stroke in the 44th minute. Bowdoin capped its scoring in the 53rd minute senior Colleen Finnerty (Hopkinton, Mass./St. Mark's) rocketed in a shot following a penalty corner for the 7-0 final.
Senior Hannah Gartner (Reisterstown, Md./Friends School) earn the win for the Polar Bears making one save in 62:28 of action. Gartner was replaced by sophomore Liz Rill (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs) who played the final 7:32 and did not make a save. Kasbohm made 12 saves and allowed six goals for the Huskies playing 48:39. Freshman Angela Porrazzo (Attleboro, Mass.) played the final 21:21 making four saves and allowing one goal.
Southern Maine travels to Framingham State on Saturday (2:00 p.m.) for a Little East Conference game. Bowdoin hosts Connecticut College on Saturday (1:00 p.m.) in a NESCAC tilt.
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