FARMINGTON, Maine - Despite an incredible 19-save effort from senior goalkeeper Roo Sawyer (Londonderry, N.H.), the University of Maine at Farmington women's soccer team was unable to overcome the fast-paced offense of the University of Southern Maine on Tuesday afternoon in the team's 2026 season opener.
How it Happened:
The Huskies jumped out of the gates quickly, as Lexi Morin headed home a cross from Kadin Davoren in the 10th minute to open up a 1-0 lead. The goal for Morin came on the Huskies' sixth shot of the opening 10 minutes as they forced Sawyer to make three early saves.
Southern Maine continued to control the pace of play, with Farmington able to muster just one blocked shot and a pair of corner kicks in the first 35-plus minutes of play. Following Morin's game-opening strike, the Huskies fired off eight more shots across the next 25 minutes, resulting in five more saves for Sawyer.
Morin once again found the back of the net, this time in the 38th minute to push the Husky lead to 2-0. The goal came as Morin was able to break behind the Farmington backline before tucking a low shot past the outstretched Sawyer.
The game remained 2-0 heading into halftime as Southern Maine held a substantial 20-2 advantage in shots after the first 45 minutes.
Farmington came out of halftime and generated two of its better opportunities to get on the scoreboard in the opening five minutes of play. Senior defender Peyton Gonya (Sabattus, Maine) fired a long-range shot that sailed just over the crossbar on the first attempt. The second came on a header from senior midfielder Rita Benoit (Hallowell, Maine) off a corner kick that was saved by Southern Maine goalkeeper Halle Brown.
The Beavers hung tough, holding off Southern Maine's offense as they continued to trail just 2-0 after nearly 80 minutes of play. But the Huskies broke through with a pair of goals just 28 seconds apart, the first from Morin on another feed from Davoren and the second an unassisted goal from Marie Benoit to put the game away.
Stats of the Game:
- Shots: Southern Maine 34, Farmington 7
- Shots on Goal: Southern Maine 23, Farmington 2
- Corner Kicks: Southern Maine 6, Farmington 5
The Goalkeepers:
Sawyer was phenomenal for the Beavers, tallying a career-high 19 saves to keep Farmington within striking distance throughout the contest. The Huskies used three goalkeepers as Kaylee Vasiloff made one save in the first half before giving way to Madi Cook and Halle Brown, who split time in the second half. Brown made one save, while Cook was not tested.
UP NEXT
The Beavers will remain at home on Saturday afternoon for another non-conference matchup, playing host to Albion College at 5:00 PM.
