GORHAM, Maine – The New England College women's ice hockey team fell 4-1 to the University of Southern Maine Huskies in Little East Conference (LEC) action on Saturday. 

The Huskies struck early as Charlotte Hughes scored her third goal of the season just four minutes into the opening period to give the home team a 1-0 advantage. USM looked to extend the lead late in the period on the power play, but sophomore goaltender Anna McGinty (Duxbury, Mass.) made key saves for the Pilgrims. Shortly after, NEC earned a power play opportunity of its own, with seniors Meadow Gilchrist (Stamford, Conn.) and Kate Devlin (Walpole, Mass.) each firing a shot that were stopped by Huskies goaltender Maggie Jones. Both teams continued to trade chances in the closing minutes, but USM carried a 1-0 lead into the first intermission.  

The teams continued to trade chances in the second period as sophomore Jamie Blondin (Oakville, Ont.) and freshman Molly Jones (Golden, Colo.) looked to put the 'Grims on the board, but Jones made the stops for USM. Neither team was able to break through, and the Huskies maintained their 1-0 lead while outshooting NEC 30-13.  

Hughes added her second goal of the game at the 9:42 mark in the final period to give the Huskies a 2-0 lead. Two minutes later, Mackenzie Woodford scored the Huskies' third goal to further extend the lead. The Pilgrims responded less than a minute later as junior Mae Lafferty (South Boston, Mass.) connected with Gilchrist to put NEC on the board. The Pilgrims called a timeout in search of another goal, but USM capitalized on the 'Grims empty net to seal the 4-1 victory. McGinty finished the afternoon with 37 saves in net for the Pilgrims.  

The Pilgrims return to action on Friday when they host LEC opponent Vermont State – Castleton, with a puck drop set for 7:00 PM.  

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