FINAL SCORE: #1 Vermont 61, #2 Maine 43
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Vermont (27-7, 13-3 AE) roared past Maine (19-13, 12-4 AE) 61-43 on Friday evening from Patrick Gymnasium during the Air Force Reserve America East Championship Game, claiming the America East title for the second consecutive season and third time in the last four years, ultimately punching their ticket to the 2026 NCAA March Madness Tournament.
 
RELATED LINKS
Box Score
CatamounTV: Highlights | Postgame | Celebration Extra
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Following an opening basket from Adrianna Smith on Maine's first possession of the game, Jadyn Weltz responded on the following possession by swishing a mid-range jump shot, knotting the score at 2-2 with 8:41 showing on the clock in the first quarter.
• Before the first media timeout with 4:08 remaining in the opening frame, the Black Bears were able to orchestrate a 7-0 scoring run seeing three separate players contribute to the offensive surge. Maine led 9-2.
• Weltz came out of that media timeout drilling two free-throws, propelling the Catamounts offense, seeing Keira Hanson swish back-to-back three pointers on the following possessions, gaining Vermont their first lead of the game, 10-9, with 2:33 on the clock in the first quarter.
• Nikola Priede scored the final two buckets for Vermont to conclude the opening frame as the Catamounts entered the second quarter with a three-point lead, 14-11.
• Malia Lenz opened scoring in the second quarter after corralling a pass in the paint from Weltz, muscling her way up for her first two points of the game, earning UVM the 16-11 lead with 9:08 left before halftime.
• The Catamounts got up to a 20-11 advantage by the first media timeout in the second frame, seeing Lenz execute on a mid-range jump shot and Hanson make a tough layup while getting fouled. Hanson proceeded to make the and-one free throw, elevating UVM's lead to 21-11 with 6:34 left to play before halftime.
• Both Vermont and Maine went back-and-forth trading baskets for the remainder of the second quarter as the Catamounts took a 29-21 advantage into halftime.
• UVM opened the third quarter dialing up a 6-0 scoring run, getting baskets from Hanson, Priede, and Lenz, forcing Maine to take a full timeout and regroup. The Catamounts held their biggest lead to that point, up 35-21, with eight minutes left in the third frame.
• With 4:52 on the clock in the third quarter, Weltz drove hard to the paint and went up for a layup, making her second basket of the game while getting fouled, sending the Patrick Gymnasium crowd into a roar, putting Vermont up 39-23 before a media timeout. Coming out of that commercial break, Weltz drained her free-throw attempt as UVM gained a 17-point lead, the largest lead of the game at that point.
• Hanson capped off scoring in the third quarter by making her third shot from long range after collecting a pass from Weltz, sending the Catamounts into the final 10 minutes of action with a commanding 48-31 advantage.
• In the opening 3:53 of the final quarter, the Catamounts battled for a slight 7-6 scoring run led by Hanson with five points, propelling UVM to a 55-37 lead with 6:07 on the clock remaining in regulation, forcing the Black Bears to take a short timeout.
• The Catamounts successfully tamed any sort of Black Bear attempt at an offensive push for the remainder of the game, walking away with the 61-43 victory from Patrick Gymnasium, punching their ticket to the 2026 NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Vermont claims its ninth America East Championship in program history, earning the title under Head Coach Alisa Kresge for the third time in the last four seasons.
• Vermont reached 27 wins for the first time since 2009 when the Catamounts won their first NCAA Tournament game in program history.
• Priede was named the 2026 Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
• In the championship game, Priede notched 14 points, eight rebounds, two assists, one steal, and a tied game high two blocks.
• Priede, Hanson, and Weltz were all named to the 2026 All-Championship Team.
• Hanson recorded a game high 23 points on 9-13 shooting from the field and 3-4 from distance. Hanson also added three rebounds, two assists, and a tied game high two blocks.
• Lenz notched a career high 14 rebounds to go along with 13 points, one steal, and one block.
• Weltz tallied 11 points, a game high five assists, and corralled three rebounds.
• UVM outrebounded Maine 36-28.
• The Catamounts blocked five shots to Maine's one.
• Vermont had 34 points in the paint to the Black Bears' 20.
• With today's Win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to the Ronald McDonald House through the Cat's Win, Community Win's initiative. Vermont Mutual has donated over $6 Million Dollars since launching their Charitable Giving Fund in 2014. 

UP NEXT
After winning the 2026 Air Force Reserve America East Championship game, the Catamounts have earned the conference's automatic qualifier bid into the 2026 NCAA Tournament. The selection show for the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament is scheduled for March 15, at 8 p.m. on ESPN. The first and second round games of the NCAA Tournament will take place from Friday, March 20 through Saturday, March 21 on campus sites. The top-four seeds in each region will host four teams for three games. Stay tuned to UVMAthletics.com for updated ticket and schedule information.

For news and updates about the Vermont women's basketball program, follow @UVMwbb on X and Facebook, @Catamountsbb on Instagram, and visit UVMathletics.com. 
Vermont Federal Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont Women's Basketball