GORHAM, Maine –  Senior Hannah Banks (Belfast, Maine) scored a brilliant game-winning goal in the third quarter and the top seeded University of Southern Maine Huskies put together an outstanding defensive effort to defeat second-seed Keene State College Owls 1-0 for the 2023 Little East Conference Championship Saturday afternoon at Hannaford Field.
 
With the win, Southern Maine earns the Little East Conference's automatic qualification into the NCAA Division III National Championship.  The NCAA selection show will be on Sunday, November 5 at 10:30 pm.  The Huskies will learn their opponent, date, time and location at that time. 
 
The 2023 LEC title is Southern Maine's second conference championship in program history and first since the 2003 season.  The Huskies defeated Keene State for that title 20 years ago. Banks was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. 
 
The Records:
No. 2 Keene Sate College (13-9)
No. 1 Southern Maine (15-7)
 
Today's game marked the 47^th meeting between Keene State College and the University of Southern Maine Huskies.  Southern Maine has won its last three meetings with the Owls, defeating KSC 5-4 in overtime in the 2023 regular season, and earning a 3-2 win over the Owls in the semifinals of the 2022 Little East Conference Championship tournament.  The Huskies are 5-2 against the Owls in the last seven meetings. KSC leads the overall series, however, 32-15.
 
How It Happened:

• Outshooting the Huskies 5-0 in the first quarter and earning a pair of penalty corners, Keene State dominated play to open the game.  The Owls nearly scored the opening goal of the game with seconds left in the first, but Husky freshman Taylor Leclerc (Fairfield, Maine/Lawrence) came up big with a sweeping defensive save.
• KSC maintained most of the possession in the second quarter with three penalty corners and a pair of shots, but the score remained 0-0 at the break. Senior Jordan Cummings (Auburn, Maine/Edward Little) mad ethe Huskies' second defensive save of the game in the second to keep the game scoreless.
• Southern Maine came out as the aggressor in the third quarter, outshooting the Owls 4-1 in the frame, forcing KSC goalkeeper Clara Gorman to make a pair of saves.  With the score still deadlocked at 0-0 late in the third, Banks picked up a loose ball in the middle of the field and strung together a strong individual effort to carry the ball into the circle.  Weaving into the left side, Banks flicked the ball up and to the upper far post in the 44^th minute to put USM ahead 1-0.
• Both teams pressured in the fourth, with Keene State leading in shots 7-4 and earning six of its penalty corners of the game in the quarter.  However, Husky senior goalkeeper Julianna Kiklis (York, Maine) was outstanding in net, making four of her six saves.  Southern Maine junior Sage Drinkwater (Steep Falls, Maine/Bonny Eagle) also put in strong defensive work, dropping in from her forward position to win balls in the midfield and help the Huskies defense kill the clock.

 
The Goalkeepers:
KSC, Clara Gorman (12-6), 60:00, 1 GA, 5 Saves
SM, Julianna Kiklis (4-1), 60:00, 0 GA, 6 Saves
 
Inside The Statistics:

• Freshman Taylor Leclerc (Fairfield, Maine/Lawrence) and senior Jordan Cummings (Auburn, Maine/Edward Little) each had key defensive saves for the Huskies. Leclerc cleared one off the line with seconds remaining in the first quarter to keep it 1-0, while Cummings made her defensive save in the second quarter. 
• Banks' goal was her sixth of the season, and second game-winning goal of 2023.  She has six goals and four assists for 16 points this season, and has 18 goals and 12 assists for 48 points in her career.
• Cummings' defensive save is her fourth of 2023, and 14^th of her career.  LeClerc's defensive save the first of her career.

 
Up Next:
Southern Maine will compete in the 2023 NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament next weekend. The Huskies will learn the date, time and location as well as their opponent during the 2023 NCAA Field Hockey Selection Show on Sunday, November 5  

The NCAA DIII field hockey selection show and bracket release will stream live on NCAA.com at 10:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 5

The tournament consists of a 26-team field, dedicating 17 slots to automatic qualifiers and the remaining nine spaces to at-large candidates selected by the selection committee. Four semifinalists will advance to Jennings Family Stadium in Newport News, Virginia, where Christopher Newport University will host the final two rounds of the tournament Nov. 17-19.

Here's a look at the complete schedule for the 2023 DIII field hockey tournament:

• First round: Wednesday, Nov. 8 at campus sites
• Second round: Saturday, Nov. 11 at campus sites
• Third round: Sunday, Nov. 12 at campus sites
• Semifinals: 12 and 3 p.m. ET Friday, Nov. 17 at Jennings Family Stadium in Newport News, Virginia
• National championship: 1 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 19 at Jennings Family Stadium in Newport News, Virginia

 
           
 
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