A double dip of UMaine Athletics on Valentine’s Day saw the Maine womens basketball team hosting UMass-Lowell, and the men’s hockey team with a rare midweek game on the road at UNH.
At Cross Insurance Center in Bangor, the Maine Black Bears held off a strong effort from the visiting UMass-Lowell Riverhawks to pick up a 70-65 America East win.
Tanesha Sutton led all scorers with 19 points, nine rebounds and three steals. Blanca Millan added 14 points, five rebounds, and nine steals as Maine improves to 18-9 overall, 11-3 America East.
UMass-Lowell, who came in with just four wins overall and one conference win, got a strong game from Kayla Rudolph who had 15 points and five assists. Kayla Gibbs added 13 points and seven rebounds. The Riverhawks shot a sizzling 58 percent from the floor in the first half, and 51 percent for the game to stay in it. UMass-Lowell did have 20 turnovers to Maines 10, as the Bears won the points off turnovers battle 21-15. Lowell is now 4-22, 1-12.
Maine will be at Vermont next Thursday night at 7 p.m.
At the Whittemore Center in Durham, NH, Mitch Fossier scored with 20 seconds left in overtime to cap a Maine come from behind 4-3 win over UNH in Hockey East men’s hockey action.
Keith Muehlbauer got Maine started 28 seconds into the game to make it 1-0, but the Wildcats answered on goals from Jason Salvaggio, Liam Blackburn, and Anthony Wyse to take a 3-1 lead into the third period.
Cedric Lacroix cut the UNH lead to one on a goal at 13:24 of the third, before Fossier scored the first of two goals on the night 1:50 later to make it 3-3 and send the game to overtime. UNH supplied most of the pressure in overtime, before Fossier gathered a loose rebound in front of UNH goalie Danny Tirone and buried his 11th of the year to send the Black Bears home with a win.
Jeremy Swayman made 37 saves in the win for Maine, while Tirone stopped 39 in the losing cause. Maine was 0-5 on the powerplay, UNH was 0-3. UNH drops to 10-15-6, 5-11-5 in Hockey East.
Maine (16-11-4, 10-8-3), will host Boston College for a single game on senior night Saturday at the Alfond. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
