ORONO, MAINE – Behind a dominant second half from Anna Olson and suffocating defense Vermont defeated Maine 61-52 and earned their fourth straight victory Wednesday night. With the victory the Catamounts handed Maine their first loss in America East play and improved to 12-6 (4-2 AE). With the loss Maine falls to 8-9 overall and 4-1 in conference play.
 
RELATED LINKS
Box Score | Box Score (.pdf)
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"Tonight was a gritty road win," said Mayer Head Women's Basketball Coach Alisa Kresge. "I'm really proud of how we guarded the three-point line and rebounded the ball. In order to win on the road, defense and rebounding are a must. We'll need to learn from the film and get ready for another tough road test on Saturday."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The two teams traded baskets over the first two minutes with Delaney Richason scoring the first points of the game on a free-throw line jumper for Vermont. Emma Utterback converted on a layup and Olson knocked down a three. Adrianna Smith scored four points and Anne Simon had two. Smith's second layup put the score at 7-6 with 8:01 remaining in the first quarter, in favor of Vermont.
• Both teams battled over the next five minutes of the quarter until Delaney Richason knocked down a three to put UVM up 15-12 with 3:12 remaining in the quarter.
• The Black Bears countered with an 11-1 run that stretched across the first and second quarter to push their lead to 23-16 with 5:23 remaining in the half after a Sarah Talon layup. During the run Maine had a balanced attack led by three from Simon while four other players scored two points for the Black Bears.
• The Catamounts then outscored Maine 8-6 over the final five minutes of the first half to close the lead to 29-24 going into the midway break.
• Catherine Gilwee scored the first basket for the Catamounts in the second half with a layup to cut the lead to 29-26 with 8:54 remaining.
• Simon answered on the other end for Maine with a layup to start a hot third quarter where she scored eight points on her way to a team-high 17 points.
• Olson knocked down 1-2 free throws to cut the lead back down to four and then Richason drilled a three for the Catamounts to cut the lead to 31-30 with 7:15 remaining in the third quarter.
• Simon answered with back-to-back baskets for the Black Bears and after a Talon layup Maine extended their lead to 37-30 with 5:23 remaining in the quarter.
• Vermont called a timeout and from there, Olson took over the game scoring 10 straight points for the Catamounts to cut their deficit to just 41-40 with 1:18 remaining.
• Gilwee knocked down a three for Vermont on the following possession to give them a 43-41 lead, their first lead since the final minutes of the first quarter.
• Jaycie Christopher answered on the other end for Maine with a three right before the buzzer to give Maine back the lead 44-43 heading into the final frame.
• Vermont's defense stepped up in the fourth quarter harassing the Black Bears into four turnovers and just 3-10 shooting which led to only eight points.
• Richason led the Vermont attack with seven points, Utterback had five and Olson chipped in six more on 3-4 shooting from the field in the final quarter.

 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Vermont snapped a 10 game losing streak against the Black Bears in the 100th overall meeting between the two teams.
• Olson finished with a game-high 21 points (16 in the second half) on an efficient 8-13 shooting from the field while grabbing one rebound and snagging a steal.
• Richason finished with a season-high 17 points while shooting 5-9 from the field and 3-6 from three as well as corralling a team-high seven rebounds and handing out two assists.
• Utterback finished with 11 points and tied for the team-high with four assists.
• The Catamounts shot 50.0 percent from three while holding the Black Bears to just 21.1 percent from behind the arc.
• Vermont won the rebounding battle 31-30.
• VUVM knocked down 13-19 shots from the free throw line and Maine hit 2-2 from the charity stripe.
• With today's win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to King Street Youth Center as part of the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative. Since its inauguration in 2017, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group has donated over $80,000 to local non-profits through the Cats Win, Community Wins initiative.  
• With the six three pointer made by Vermont M&T Bank will be donating $150 to the Vermont Foodbank. With a community bank approach, M&T Bank helps people reach their personal and business goals with banking, mortgage, loan and investment services.

 
WHAT'S UP NEXT
Following the Catamounts matchup tonight with the Black Bears, Vermont will continue on the road at NJIT on Saturday, January 21. The start time for that game is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN3. Ryan Zimmerman, the voice of Catamounts women's basketball, will be on the call on the radio on WVMT.
 
NATIONAL GIRLS AND WOMEN IN SPORTS DAY
The University of Vermont Women's Basketball team will celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day powered by Vermont Mutual on Saturday, February 4th during their game against UAlbany at 12 P.M. On February 4th, girls from the local community with an interest in sports and being involved in this celebration will have the opportunity to become members of the UVM Athletic Staff for the day. Girls between fourth and eighth grade can apply to a wide variety of positions including: Public Address Announcer, Marketing Assistant, Ticket Staff, and many more! Participants will be able to work in the position for one half of the game, the other half they will be able to watch the game with their family. To apply, please visit https://uvmathletics.com/sb_output.aspx?form=126