With the win Southern Maine evens out its record at 8-8 and improves its Little East Conference standing to 4-2.  Plymouth State suffers its fourth consecutive loss to drop to 6-9 overall and 0-5 in the Little East.

            Gallagher was not the only Huskies to hit a career-mark in scoring as junior Jillian Madden (North Andover, Mass.) scored a career-best 10 points, including four points in the overtime period.  Junior Ella Ramonas (Portland, Maine/Deering) added a team-high 18 points, five rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots.  Senior Rebecca Knight (Alfred, Maine/McAuley) added eight points, four assists and a pair of steals.

            The Huskies started the game in control and led 6-2 after connecting on its first three attempts, but Plymouth State sophomore Ace Lawrence (Middletown, Conn.) caught fire from beyond the arc to spur her team on.  After Ramonas' layup made it 7-2 in favor of the Huskies, Lawrence scored the Panthers' next 11 points as part of an 11-2 PSU run. Lawrence's fourth three of the half made it 18-10 in favor of PSU with 10:32 to play and suddenly USM found itself playing catch up. USM trailed by eight, 22-14, with 8:03 to play, before outscoring the Panthers 10-6 down the stretch to trail 28-24.

            In the second half, USM opened with seven straight points to grab its first lead since early in the second half.  Gallagher and Knight combined for the seven points, with Gallagher sinking an opening layup, before Knight connected on a pair of free throws to knot the score up at 28-28.  Knight came up with a steal and then found Gallagher for a cutting layup and she converted the traditional three-point play for a 31-30 USM lead with 16:17 remaining.

            Both teams then settled into a back-and-forth contest.  USM led 36-35 after another set of Knight free throws, before the Panthers made a 10-2 run to snag a 45-38 lead midway through the half.  Senior Kelley Collins (Groveton, N.H.) and Lawrence each connected on threes in the run. USM countered however and outscored the Panthers 17-4 over the next eight minutes to lead 55-49 with 1:24 to play. Four different players scored in the run for the Huskies led by eight points from Ramonas.

            Facing a six-point deficit and a shortage in clock, PSU forced overtime with a three from Collins and timely offensive rebounding and free throw shooting from sophomore Kayla Wyland (Melrose, Mass.) down the stretch.

            In overtime, the Huskies' struck first as Madden sank her second three of the game for a 59-56 lead after a pair of missed possessions on either side of the ball.  PSU sophomore Savannah Miller (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown West) countered with a long jumper before Gallagher hit a layup with 2:49 left for a 61-58 USM advantage. However, Lawrence again delivered for the Panthers with a game-tying three with 1:59 to go, but it was the last points of the stanza for PSU as USM got the defensive stops it needed to hold on for the win.

'           Lawrence, who entered the game shooting 25.0 percent from three-point range, finished with a game-high 24 points for the Panthers shooting 6-for-12 from the three.  Wyland added 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds.

            Southern Maine hosts Western Connecticut State on Saturday (1:00 p.m.) in a Little East Conference match up.  Plymouth State travels to UMass Dartmouth on Saturday (1:00 p.m.) for a conference game.

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