The latest installment in the University of Maine’s best-in-the-nation, school-record winning streak of 21 games closely resembled many of the preceding volumes.
More dramatic than it had to be, but with the same happy ending.
After leading by 22 points with less than nine minutes remaining, Maine weathered a flurry of New Hampshire 3-pointers, cashed in its free throws and walked away with a 71-65 America East women’s basketball semifinal win at Chase Family Arena in West Hartford, Conn., on Friday night.
Top-seeded Maine (25-4) will face Boston University in the conference final at 4 p.m. today. The winner advances to the NCAA field of 64.
The Black Bears haven’t been to the tournament since the 1999-2000 season, which was the last in former coach Joanne Palombo-McCallie’s tenure and one year before Mount Blue High School graduate Heather Ernest joined the program.
Ernest, the America East Player of the Year, led the Black Bears once again, nailing five-of-seven from the field and six-for-seven from the line for a team-high 16 points.
Maine exhibited more than just its junior center/forward, however, with Melissa Heon and Kim Corbitt adding 11 points apiece. Heon also dished out five assists.
Missy Traversi hit all four of her shots, including two 3-pointers, for 10 points in 18 minutes of work off the bench. She and Corbitt each made three steals.
Another key reserve, Monica Peterson, contributed eight points and topped Maine with eight rebounds.
Maren Matthias went 9-for-11 from the field and led all scorers with 27 points for UNH (13-16).
The Black Bears cruised to the finish line after leading 35-21 at the half that grew thanks to a 21-13 run to open the second stanza. Maine connected at better than 60 percent from the floor through the first 30 minutes.
Heon and Traversi each canned a trey, the latter putting Maine on top 50-29.
Two Ernest free throws made it 56-34 with 8:48 remaining.
Geneva Livingston’s 3-pointer with 7:44 left quietly triggered the Wildcats’ late rally.
Maine still led 65-47 on two Corbitt freebies with 4:10 to play before UNH manufactured 11 straight points to put the issue in doubt. Ebony Woods resuscitated the Wildcats with a 3-pointer, one of seven strikes from beyond the arc in the second half for UNH.
Lindsay Adams’ lay-up and a Mat ed another Livingston trey. Colleen Mullen then fed Matthias for a lay-up that trimmed the deficit to 65-58 with a minute left.
Heon hit a free throw to slow the Wildcats’ progress. She missed the second, but Ernest grabbed the rebound and Corbitt subsequently sank two more. Ernest dropped in another pair with 33 seconds to go.
Six points was the closest UNH had been since late in the first half.
For the second straight night, Maine trailed briefly. Adams hit two free throws, then nailed a 3-pointer off a dish from Emily Caschera, to give the Wildcats a 9-6 advantage.
Maine stormed back on the shoulders of Corbitt, who cashed in following a steal by Heon, and Schrader, who swished a short jumper in the paint to retrieve the lead for the Black Bears at 10-9.
Matthias answered with a traditional 3-point play, kickstarted by a Mullen swipe from Heon, to give UNH a 12-10 edge that would be its last.
Julie Veilleux fed Schrader and Corbitt for consecutive buckets to put Maine on top, and Traversi’s steal and lay-up capped a run of six consecutive points.
UNH stayed with five at 24-19 on Caschera’s put-back jumper with 6:03 to go. Over the ensuing four minutes, the Black Bears embarked on an 11-0 surge to take complete command.
Ernest continued to dominate down low as the Black Bears pounded the ball inside to her both in halfcourt sets and in transition.
Corbitt’s steal set the table for an Ernest lay-up and free throw to trigger the decisive run.
On Maine’s next trip, Ernest crashed the boards and was rewarded with a pair of free throws, hitting the first.
After setting up teammates early in the half, Veilleux’s aim was true with back-to-back jumpers, and a Traversi theft put Heon in position for a trifecta that upped Maine’s lead to 35-19.
Livingston added 15 points and eight rebounds for the Wildcats. Adams struggled to nine points on 2-for-10 shooting.
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