GORHAM, Maine  –  Freshman Ciera Hill (Pembroke, N.H./Pembroke Academy) scored the game-winning goal and graduate student Gaby Panagakos (Scarborough, Maine) closed the door to lead the top-seed University of Southern Maine Huskies to a 2-0 win over the fourth-seed Castleton University Spartans in a semifinal game of the 2022 Little East Conference Women's Soccer Semifinal Thursday afternoon at Hannaford Field.
 
With the win, Southern Maine advances to the LEC Championship game for the first time in program history.  Junior goalkeeper Breanna Atwood (Franklin, Mass.) made six saves to backstop the Huskies to her school-record 11^th shutout of the season.
 
The Records:
No. 4 Castleton (8-11-1)
No. 1 Southern Maine (16-3-0)
 

•  Facing the Spartans for the fifth time in series history, Southern Maine leads the series 3-2. USM claimed a 4-0 win over Castleton during the regular season. 

 
How It Happened:

• Outshooting the Huskies 27-10, the Huskies did not get on the scoreboard until the 37^th minute when Hill got a foot on a corner kick service from sophomore Aly Veilleux (Manchester, N.H.) for her third goal of the season. 
• Castleton senior goalkeeper Alex Benfatti (Gloversville, N.Y.) kept the Spartans within striking distance making several big saves at near point-blank range in the second half. Benfatti finished with 11 saves, making five in the final 45 minutes.
• Panagakos put the game out of reach for Castleton in the 85^th minute with an outstanding volley out of the air off of a service from graduate student Ciera Berthiaume (Windham, Maine) for a 2-0 margin. The goal was Panagakos' sixth of the season.

 
The Goalkeepers:
CU, Alex Benfatti (8-9-1), 90:00, 22 GA, 11 Saves
SM, Breanna Atwood (15-3), 90:00, 0 GA, 6 Saves
 
Inside The Stats:

• Leading 27-10 in shots, USM had a 13-6 advantage in shots on goal. The Huskies also had a 9-1 lead in corner kicks. 
• Berthiaume's assist is the 20^th of her career – a program record – and gives her 106 career points (43 goals, 20 assists), and puts her one off of the school record for both men and women's soccer programs. She is the all-time leader in goals, assists and points in women's soccer history. 
• Atwood's 11^th shutout is the 15 of her career.  Already the single-season record holder for shutouts, Atwood is third in career shutout records.  She has a 0.71 goals against average and a 86.8 save percentage. 

 
Up Next:
The Huskies, the 2022 Little East Conference Regular Season Champions, advance to the championship game of the 2022 LEC Championship Tournament. USM will face no. 2 WestConn on Saturday (5:00 pm). WestConn defeated No. 3 UMass Boston 4-0 in the other semifinal played today.