Box Score

BIDDEFORD, Maine -- After falling behind early, fourth-seeded University of New England scored the last four goals of the game to move on in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III New England Field Hockey Championship with a 4-1 quarterfinal-round victory over No. 5 Anna Maria College on Wednesday (Nov. 7) at a wind-chilled Big Blue Turf.

2012 ECAC Division III New England Field Hockey Championship
Semifinal Round ~ Saturday, November 10
Bridgewater, Mass. ~ 12:00 p.m.
#4 UNE (11-9) at #1 Bridgewater State (17-3)
Last Meeting: October 26, 2010 (UNE won on the road, 4-3)
All-time Series: Bridgewater State leads 4-3

The Nor'easters (11-9) will now head to top-seeded Bridgewater State University for the first of two semifinal matches on Saturday. Game time is set for 12 p.m.

The Amcats' year comes to an end with an overall mark of 14-8.

Junior Brittany Liptak (Westfield, Mass.) struck for a pair of goals to lead UNE, including what proved to be the game-winner with just over 12 minutes left in the opening half. The Nor'easters have come away victorious from the last six meetings with AMC.

Anna Maria got on the board first with 6:46 gone when senior Marybeth McClune (Worcester, Mass.) tallied her team-leading 20th marker of the season off a rebound at the left post.

Big Blue senior Laura Egounis (Boscawen, N.H.) answered in the 16th minute, sending in a drive from the top of the arc. Junior Hayley LaPointe (Topsham, Maine) and classmate Emily Koehler (Pelham, N.H.) assisted on the play.

Then Liptak put in a feed from LaPointe to give the hosts a 2-1 lead -- one that still held at the break. The Nor'easters finished the period with a 17-6 advantage in shot attempts, although the penalty corner totals were even at 7-7.

Liptak from junior Casey Clark (Bethlehem, N.H.) made it 3-1 in the 43rd minute of action, and sophomores Erin Bibber (Charlton, Mass.) and Hannah Cutting (Sebago, Maine) connected for Bibber's fourth goal of the year just 50 seconds later to increase the margin to three.

Clark's assist upped the forward's total of 11 on the year, matching the program's single-season record set by Bree Tupper in 2009.

UNE built a 20-5 margin in shots during the final 35 minutes, and closed with a 10-1 difference in corners during the half.

Sophomore Kaitlyn Warren (Boscawen, N.H.) recorded six stops for the Nor'easters, while Egounis added two defensive saves in the initial frame.

The Amcats received 14 saves from first-year Mary kate Breen (Londonderry, N.H.) -- including a stop with her blocker on a penalty stroke try in the waning seconds of regulation. Classmate Amanda Hebert (South Deerfield, Mass.) and sophomores Bridget Larsen (Hull, Mass.) and Nicole Morrison (Rutland, Mass.) each contributed a defensive save for the visitors.

Big Blue's next opponent, Bridgewater State, owns a slim 4-3 edge in all-time meetings between the teams. The Nor'easters and the Bears last met in late October of 2010 in Bridgewater, where UNE rallied from a two-goal deficit in last 19 minutes to pick up a 4-3 triumph.


To view the championship bracket, click HERE.



(revised 11/11/12 12:30 p.m.)