GORHAM, ME – When Eastern Connecticut State University Field Hockey (1-1, LEC 1-0) traveled to Gorham, Maine to face Southern Maine (1-2, 0-1 LEC), the Warriors had lost their last eight road games and held a 1-11 record all-time at Hannaford Field. Their one road win came in 2004 off the stick of Maggie Gway, a resident of Maine, who was awarded a penalty corner with 3.4 seconds left in regulation and scored as time expired to give the Warriors the win.
 
    On Saturday, graduate student Brianna Nolan (Watertown) etched her name in Eastern Connecticut State University Field Hockey history when she scored on the right side of the goal against Southern Maine's junior goalkeeper Juliana Kiklis in a double overtime thriller to send the Warriors home with a 3-2 victory against the Huskies. It would become the second time in Eastern Connecticut State University Field Hockey's 24-year program history that they would defeat the Southern Maine Huskies on the road.

    After weathering an early Southern Maine attack which included two shots that were saved by junior goalie Sarah Gallagher (South Windsor), Eastern finished the first quarter with a scoring opportunity of their own when Nolan took a penalty corner with 1:29 remaining which found the stick of sophomore midfielder Leah Kowalasky (Middlebury) who fired a shot which was saved by Kiklis to keep the game scoreless.
 
    Southern Maine would strike first early into the second quarter as senior forward Samantha Ellis gathered a deflection following a shot by sophomore forward Brooke Carson and buried it by Gallagher to give the Huskies the 1-0 advantage. But the Warriors would respond less than a minute later when sophomore forward Isabel Sanchez (Weston) knotted things up at one a piece which would be the score going into the half.
 
    Six minutes into the third quarter, Nolan would net her first goal of the day on a pass from Bryce Makula (Guilford) following a penalty corner to put the Warriors ahead 2-1. The score would hold until the closing minutes of the fourth quarter when Brooke Carson tipped the ball which was hit by first-year forward Sage Drinkwater off a penalty corner to tie the game at two and send it into overtime.
 
    In the first overtime, Nolan had a chance to seal it for the Warriors when she dove after the ball in front of the goal in an attempt to push it by Kiklis who with the help of her defense was able to neutralize the only threat by either team in the period.
 
    However, Nolan's moment would come after a back and forth second overtime frame. After a turnover in the offensive zone by Southern Maine led to a breakaway by Isabel Sanchez with first-year defender Jaigan Boudreau chasing her down. Boudreau would stumble slightly as Sanchez pulled away before tripping up the sophomore near the mouth of the goal, resulting in a penalty stroke taken by Nolan. The graduate student took a look to the sidelines before quickly focusing on the ball and firing by the left side of Kiklis for the victory over the Southern Maine Huskies who were ranked 4^th in the Little East Conference preseason coaches' poll.
 
    The game winner by Nolan was her fourth career game-winning goal along with her second successful penalty stroke in two career attempts, both of which have come this season. The Watertown native also made her 30^th career start in four seasons with Eastern.
 
    Sarah Gallagher earned her first career win as the junior recorded 11 saves on 13 shots attempted by Southern Maine on the afternoon.
 
    The Warriors return to action on Wednesday when they take on Springfield College in their 2021-2022 home opener at 4:00 PM at Rick McCarthy Field.