PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The University of Southern Maine took advantage of a free kick from just outside the box in the 87th minute to sneak past Plymouth State University, 1-0, in a Little East Conference (LEC) women's soccer game at Arold Field on Wednesday afternoon.
Plymouth State played brilliantly with sophomore
Erin Cammarota (Goffstown, N.H.) and junior
Maryn Monett (Rockland, Mass.) controlling the back line to limit the Huskies' scoring chances. On the opposite side of the field, junior
Ashley Plante (Concord, N.H.) and senior
McKayla Palhof (Loudon, N.H.) made well-timed runs to pressure the USM defense, but were unable to break through.
PSU was just minutes from earning back-to-back draws with the top two teams in the LEC, but Southern Maine set up for a free kick at the right corner of the box with three minutes and change to play. The ball was delivered to the far post, where it was flicked just past the PSU goalkeeper to the front of the six, then booted into the back of the net for the game's only score.
Plymouth State slips to 5-6-2 (1-3-2 LEC), while Southern Maine is now 12-1-0 and 5-0-0 in the Little East.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 0, Southern Maine 1
- Plymouth State (5-6-2, 1-3-2 LEC)
- Southern Maine (12-1-0, 5-0-0 LEC)
How it Happened:
- Palhof cut through the Huskies' midfield to create a pair of scoring chances in the first 13 minutes of action, but the Southern Maine goalkeeper had the answer each time.
- Junior Tess LeDuc (Marlborough, Mass.) had a chance in the 27th minute but her chip shot from 25 yards out was tipped just over the cross bar by the USM goalkeeper.
- Minutes later, graduate student Taylor Siewierski (Colebrook, N.H.) blasted a shot on target, The USM goalkeeper made the save but the rebound deflected to graduate student Kaliana Palhof (Loudon, N.H.), whose follow up shot just missed the far post.
- Plymouth State outshot the Huskies by a 10-6 margin over the first half, including 6-3 on goal.
- Southern Maine built some momentum in the second half, but graduate student Elena Register (Helena, Ala.) and the back line held strong.
- After a foul call from just outside the box, the visitors set up with lots of traffic in front. The ball was delivered to the far post with it was touched past Register to the front of the goal where a USM player booted it to the back of the open net.
- Plymouth State brought heavy pressure looking for the equalizer, earning a corner kick with about two minutes remaining, but USM was able to clear the ball to hold on for the narrow victory.
By the Numbers:
- Register matched a season high with her seven saves.
- Plante and McKayla Palhof led the Panthers with three shots apiece, while LeDuc added two.
- Plymouth State finished with a 9-8 advantage in shots on goal.
- The Huskies had a slight 6-5 edge in corner kicks.
- The teams have split the last six meetings.
Up Next:
- Plymouth State heads to Castleton on Saturday (Oct. 15) for another LEC battle at 4:30 p.m.
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