GORHAM, Maine   -  Junior Julia McKenna (Windham, Maine) assisted on the game-tying goal and then scored the game-winning goal 32 seconds apart to lead the University of Southern Maine Huskies' to a 3-2 come-from-behind win over the Western Connecticut State University Wolves in a Little East Conference women's soccer game Saturday afternoon at Hannaford Field.
 
With the win, Southern Maine claims the 2023 Little East Conference Regular Season Title, and the top spot in the upcoming LEC Championship Tournament.  The Huskies are defending their 2022 regular season and championship titles.
 
The Records:
Western Connecticut (7-7-4, 4-2-1 Little East)
Southern Maine (12-0-4, 5-0-2 Little East)
 
Today's game marked the 35^th meeting between the Western Connecticut State University Wolves and the University of Southern Maine Huskies.  WestConn leads the overall series 32-3.  The Huskies' 3-1 double overtime win over the Wolves in the 2022 Little East Conference Championship game snapped a 26-game losing streak.  Prior to the 2022 championship, Southern Maine last defeated WestConn on October 21, 2000 by the score 2-1.
 
.
 
How It Happened:

• Southern Maine got on the board first as senior Catriona Gould (Freeport, Maine) took an excellent ball over the top from senior Sarah Lowell (Oakland, Maine/Messalonskee) and then slotted the ball to the far post in the seventh minute. 
• WestConn's Myah Croze evened the game up at 1-1, scoring her team and LEC-leading 13^th goal of the season, in the 27^th minute.  Croze's goal was direct off of a corner kick to the near post for the Olimpico.
• With the score knotted at 1-1 in the second half, and the Huskies dominating play, the Wolves went ahead 2-1 against the run of play with a counterattack as Suzana Imetovski carried the ball and beat Husky goalkeeper Breanna Atwood (Franklin, Mass.) to the far post with a low driven shot in the 67^th minute.
• Despite outshooting the Wolves 15-3 in the second half, the Huskies remained down a goal.  Gould hit the cross bar in the 66^th minute, and WestConn goalkeeper Grace Regan made six saves.
• Awarded their first and only corner kick of the game in the 87^th minute, McKenna sent a well-placed ball in the far-post side of the box, and Sabatino was able to beat the WestConn defenders for a header in traffic and a 2-2 game at 87:03.
• Thirty-seconds later, McKenna delivered the game-winning goal.  After winning the ball after the restart, senior Eliza Roy (Camden, Maine) reversed the field to find sophomore Riley Reitchel (Palermo, Maine/Erskine Academy). Reitchel carried the ball down the right side, sending in a cross near the penalty spot and McKenna knocked a powerful header past WestConn's Regan. 

 
The Goalkeepers:
SM, Breanna Atwood (12-0-4), 90:00, 2 GA, 6 Saves
WC, Grace Regan (7-5-3), 90:00, 3 GA, 12 Saves
 
Inside The Stats:

• McKenna's game-winning goal is the third of the 2023 season and fifth of her career.  She has seven goals and six assists this season, and has 19 goals and eight assists in her career for 46 points. 
• Gould's goal marked the 40^th of her career.  She has 40 goals, 13 assists and 93 points.  Gould is second in career scoring for the Huskies behind Ciera Berthiaume's (2018-19, 2021-22) 43 goals.  Her 13 assists are tied for fourth in USM records, while her 93 points are second all-time behind Berthiaume's (106 points, 43 g – 20 a).
• Sabatino now has four goals and two assists as a Husky for 10 points.  Today's goal marked the 40^th of her career (Bridgewater University). 

 
Up Next:
The Huskies complete the regular season on the road at No. 24 University of Hartford on Wednesday, October 25 (4:30 pm) and Vermont State University – Castleton on Saturday, October 28 (12:00 pm).  The 2023 Little East Conference Championship Tournament begins on Tuesday, October 31.  USM will have a bye and host a semifinal game on November 2 (time and opponent TBA).
           
-cac-