FINAL SCORE: Maine 57, Vermont 55
BURLINGTON, Vt. – A strong third quarter propelled the Black Bears past Vermont, as the Catamounts dropped their first conference game at home of the season after getting off to a 20-8 start in the opening quarter. With the loss, Vermont now sits 18-9 (10-3 AE) on the season while Maine improves to 18-8 (11-1) on the campaign and moves into sole possession of first place in America East.
 
RELATED LINKS
Box Score | Box Score (.pdf)
CatamounTV Highlights
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"Unfortunately, I felt like we went back to we only have one side of the court. We didn't play the back side," said Mayer Women's Head Basketball Coach Alisa Kresge. "This game we don't get back, but we got to get ready for Albany, a really talented team and we know it's going to be a grueling game. But that's the only thing we can control right now; is how we respond and how we move forward."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Vermont scored on its first possession after Emma Utterback opened scoring for the Catamounts, making her floating jump shot after driving hard to the paint. Vermont took the early 2-0 lead.
• Back-to-back three-pointers from Keira Hanson and Andjela Matic put Vermont up by four, 12-8, with 5:06 to go in the first quarter, prior to the first media timeout.
• Coming out of timeout, Matic put the Catamounts on her back to finish the opening quarter, going on an 11-0 scoring run by herself, making three baskets from beyond the arc, including a smooth jump shot from behind the elbow, giving Vermont a 20-8 cushion heading into the second quarter.
• Maine began the second frame with a slight offensive push, scoring four consecutive points narrowing the lead to 20-12. Hanson responded to Maine's surge with two three-pointers on back-to-back possessions for Vermont, putting them ahead, 26-14.
• Anna Olson scored two layups on consecutive offensive possessions, maintaining the Catamount's lead, 30-19, with 2:23 left of the first half. Hanson concluded scoring for Vermont in the opening half, driving to the rim and delivering on her fourth basket of the game through traffic, bringing the Catamounts to halftime with a 32-24 advantage over the Black Bears.
• Third quarter action got under way with Maine dialing up an 11-2 scoring run to erase the Catamounts lead, and move ahead by one, 34-35.
• A three-pointer from Matic, her fourth of the game, ignited the crowd at Patrick Gym after regaining the lead, 39-37, with 4:38 remaining in the third quarter.
• Hanson found Olson under the basket with a lob pass, putting Olson in prime position to score her layup and put her in double-figure scoring with ten points with 2:46 left of the third quarter. Vermont led 41-39.
• The Black Bears finished the third quarter on a 7-2 run, ultimately taking the 43-46 lead heading into the final quarter of the match.
• Delaney Richason knotted the score at 46-46 with 8:08 remaining of gametime after Utterback fed her under the basket, making her layup while getting fouled. Richason connected on her free-throw, executing the crucial three-point play.
• Following Richason's three-point play, Olson went down due to an injury, allowing Maine to orchestrate a 9-5 scoring run with 2:50 left of the game, taking the lead, 51-55.
• After over two minutes of scoreless basketball, Utterback scored a driving layup with 0:32 remaining to cut the deficit in half, 53-55.
• A turnover by Vermont resulted in free throws for Maine, putting them up by four, 53-57, with 0:21 on the clock.
• A clutch left-handed layup from Hanson with 0:10 left of the game brought the Catamounts within two, 57-59.
• Despite getting an opportunity to win after two missed free throws by Maine in the final seconds, Vermont couldn't recover their lead, falling to Maine 55-57.

 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Despite going down early with an injury, Olson still registered a double-double, tallying 12 points and 10 rebounds, to go along with two assists, two steals, and a block. Olson now has eight career double-doubles.
• Matic led all Catamounts in scoring for the second straight game, scoring 14 points on 5-10 shooting from the floor while going 4-6 from the three-point line. She added five rebounds and two assists to her stat line.
• Hanson and Utterback each contributed double digit scoring with Hanson earning 13 total points and Utterback reaching 10.
• Utterback led all players in assists, earning four total against Maine.
• UVM's bench outscored Maine's bench, 27-4.
• UVM won the turnover battle, committing only seven to Maine's 14.
• UVM shot better in all three categories Saturday night, shooting 44.9 percent (22-of-49) from the floor, 42.1 percent (8-of-19) from three, and 75.0 percent (3-of-4) from the free throw line.

 
UP NEXT
Vermont prepares to face UAlbany in their final regular season home game on Thursday (Feb. 22) with tip set for 6 p.m. That game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and the international stream will be available on AmericaEast.TV. Tickets are available for purchase at UVMathletics.com/Tickets or by visiting the Patrick Gym Box Office on gameday.
 
Vermont Federal Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont Women's Basketball