FINAL SCORE: Vermont 3, No. 15 Maine 0
ORONO, Maine – Pleun Haantjes scored in the 15th minute and the Vermont Catamounts (8-9, 4-3 AE) never looked back, taking a 3-0 win over the 15th-ranked Maine Black Bears (13-4, 4-3 AE) Friday afternoon in Orono.
 
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COACH'S QUOTE
"We have been talking about maintaining a growth mindset, and one of the objectives going into today was to connect on the pitch for the duration of the match, and have our strongest defensive performance to date against a very effective Maine offense," head coach Kate Pfeifer said. "We certainly accomplished that and will be looking to improve on this performance on Sunday. It was great to see some progress with how we are connecting on attack, and taking some really smart risks as well."

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Haantjes received a pass off a Vermont penalty corner in the 15th minute and fired a shot past Mia Borley (5 saves) for the early lead.
• Sierra Espeland (9 saves) kept the Catamount lead in the 20th minute with a big save on Maine's Casey Crowley from in close.
• Landon Warren received a long pass in the Black Bear circle and was alone with Borley and teammate Bailey Matthews. Warren moved the ball to a waiting Matthews on Borley's left, who found the back of the net easily for a 2-0 lead.
• The Cats nearly made it 3-0 in the 35th minute off the stick of Rachel Phillips, but a Vermont foul reversed a Cat goal.
• Phillips did not wait long to make another impact though, her 58th minute shot off a Vermont corner was deflected by Warren for the seniors eighth goal of the season.
• Maine held a 15-10 edge in shots but only a 9-8 lead in shots on goal. Vermont held a 7-6 advantage on penalty corners, and scored on a pair of corner chances.

NOTES

• UVM takes its first win over Maine since October 2007, when UVM left Orono with a 2-1 win. It is just the 10th win over Maine in program history.
• Vermont holds a 4-3 America East record heading into Sunday's regular season finale at Moulton Winder Field. The Catamounts will clinch the second seed in next weekend's America East Tournament with a win and a Maine loss on Sunday.
• Warren now sits fifth in Vermont field hockey history with 79 career points and is now tied for second in program history with 39 career goals.
• Espeland recorded her second career shutout with her nine-save performance against the Black Bears. It is just the second time this season Maine has been held scoreless.
• With the victory, the Cats Win, Community Wins campaign and Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate another $100 to the Boys and Girls Club of Burlington, bringing this year's total to 86 wins and $8,600.

UP NEXT
Vermont hosts Albany to close the regular season on Sunday (Oct. 28) for Senior Day, presented by UVM Alumni Association, at Moulton Winder Field. Jackie Gillen, Carla Godsman, Olivia Hurd, Lauren Tucker, and Landon Warren will be honored prior to the 2 p.m. match start.