The win is the second straight for the Huskies who improve to 4-3 overall and even their record at 1-1 in Little East Conference play.  Eastern Connecticut had its four-game winning streak snapped to stand at 4-2 overall and 1-1 in the LEC.

            The Warriors maintained a majority of the possession in the opening half, but the Huskies were able to capitalize on a loose ball in front of the cage following a powerful driven shot from senior Peyton Dostie (Standish, Maine/Bonny Eagle).  After Dostie's initial strike was saved, Smedberg was in the right place at the right time to give the Huskies a 1-0 advantage.

            The Warriors nearly took the early lead in the eighth minute, but senior Marina Davidson (Windham, Maine) cleared a ball off of the line for a defensive save.  Eastern Connecticut's Laura Chicorka (Enfield, Conn./Enrico Fermi) also had a near goal, but USM sophomore goalkeeper Amanda Kasbohm (York, Maine) made a diving stop for one of her six first-half saves in the 15th minute.  

            The Warriors opened the second half with a flurry of penalty corners earning three consecutive attempts in the opening two minutes of the half, and six in the first ten, but they were unable to score. Eastern's Hannah Keiser (Danbury, Conn./Danbury) had a pair of near misses in the first ten minutes, including a bang-bang play off of a corner that sailed high of the net.

            Eastern dominated possession in the first 17 minutes of the second half, before the Huskies rebounded with some offensive pressure of their own.  The Huskies' were awarded a penalty stroke following a corner in the 57th minute, but junior Allison Ward's (Rockland, Maine/Oceanside) attempt was turned away by Warrior sophomore Samantha Scavo (Redding, Conn./Joel Barlow).

            The Warriors had a few solid chances in the closing minutes, including their 16th penalty corner of the game in the final minute, but Kasbohm again came up with the save on a Chicorka shot.  Kasbohm's 11th save of the game preserved the shutout and the Huskies killed the final seconds of the game to earn the win.

            Scavo had a strong game in net despite the loss.  Along with stopping the penalty shot in the second half, Scavo made 10 saves.  Eastern had a 17-14 advantage in shots and a 16-6 advantage in penalty corners.   

Southern Maine returns to action on Thursday (4:00 p.m.) at St. Joseph's College (Maine) for a non-conference game.  Eastern Connecticut heads to Babson College on Tuesday (4:30 p.m.)

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