The University of Maine women’s soccer team got a goal very late in the second half and stayed unbeaten through three games of their 2023 season on Thursday afternoon, salvaging a 1-1 non-conference tie with Holy Cross at Mahaney Diamond in Orono.
Holy Cross (0-2-1) got their lone goal of the contest and only one of the first half in the 25th minute on a tally by Cerys Balmer, her second of the season. In a pretty even game shots wise, Maine did have a 6-3 advantage in corner kick opportunities but couldn’t solve Crusaders starting goalie MacKenzie Wagner for almost the entire 90 minutes. That is until junior Elle Vermilya (Framingham, Massachusetts) would tie it with just 11 seconds left on the clock, with a well placed shot in the upper right corner of the net unassisted past Wagner. Per NCAA rules, there is no overtime in regular season collegiate soccer matches so the Black Bears (2-0-1) settled for the draw.
Kira Kutzinski had her shutout streak to begin the season ended at 205 minutes, and had three saves in net. Sydney Baldwin assisted on the Balmer goal for Holy Cross out of the Patriot League. Wagner in goal also made three saves for the Crusaders. Maine now heads out on a five game road trip beginning Sunday morning when they travel to take on Stonehill College at 11 a.m.
Story by Chris Lessner
