GORHAM, Maine  --  Junior Mary Vaughan (Brunswick, Maine/Pomfret School) snapped a 9-9 tie with 6:29 to play and the University of Southern Maine went on to defeat Curry College, 10-9, in a non-conference women's lacrosse game Thursday afternoon at Paula Hodgdon Field.
            The win was the second straight for the Huskies, bringing them back to .500 at 6-6 overall.  The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Colonels who fall to 9-4.
            Trailing 8-5 with 20 minutes to play, the Huskies went on a 4-0 run over the next eight minutes to take a 9-8 advantage.  Junior Kristy Kendrick (Waterboro, Maine/Massabesic) spark the surge with a goal and two assists.
            Junior Elissa Bulgatz (North Brook, Ill.) got the Colonels back even with her second goal of the game with 6:50 to play.  Southern Maine gained the ensuing draw control, and freshman Lauren Santo (Salem, N.H.) found Vaughan in front of the net for a quick shot.  The goal proved decisive as the Huskies were able to control the clock much of the final six minutes.
            Vaughan finished the game with a team-high three goals and one assist.  Kendrick tallied two goals and two assists while Santo chipped in a goal and an assist.  Freshman goalie Samantha Kiesel (Lakeville, Mass./Kents Hill) had an outstanding game making 17 saves, including eight stops on free-position attempts.
            The first half was closely contested.  Southern Maine twice led by two (2-0 and 3-1), but Curry would rally with a 4-1 run over the final 17 minutes to take a 5-4 lead into halftime.  Senior Ashley Hansbury (Chelmsford, Mass.) ignited the outburst, setting up senior Nicole Fratto (Braintree, Mass.) for a goal.  Hansbury would later score twice, including the go-ahead marker with 2:32 left in the half, during the run.
            The Colonels added to their lead early in the second half on goals by seniors Rachel Robichaud(Billerica, Mass.) and Carissa Lauyer (Bloomsbury, N.J./Huntertown).  Vaughan and Hansbury traded goals two minutes apart for an 8-5 advantage to the Colonels.
            Hansbury led all scorers with a game-high four goals and an assist.  Bulgatz had two goals.  Junior goalie Maria Lynch (Billerica, Mass.) recorded fourteen saves.
            Curry had a 33-27 edge in shots and a 13-8 advantage in draw controls.  USM's defense held Curry, which came into the game averaging 17.1 goals a game, to a season-low nine goals.
            Southern Maine returns to action on Saturday (1:00 p.m.) when it hosts the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth for a Little East Conference game.  Curry entertains Salve Regina University on Saturday (1:30 p.m.) in a Commonwealth Coast Conference match.

(Courtesty of University of Southern Maine Sports Information)