Senior center Lacey Martin’s second goal of the game, coming with just 2:26 remaining, gave the Boston University Terriers a hard-fought 4-3 Hockey East win over the University of Maine at Alfond Arena on Monday night.
It was the 15th time in the teams’ last 21 meetings that was decided by one goal or a tie.
BU improved to 9-8-2 overall and 7-6-1 in the conference, while UMaine fell to 10-11-0 and 6-8-0, respectively.
Mari Pietersen made 21 saves for BU, while Julia Bachetti came up with 26 stops for UMaine, which had overcome a 3-1 deficit to tie it.
But Martin decided it when she took a pass from Maeve Kelly in the neutral zone and was able to skate around a UMaine defenseman, who was in the middle of the ice and came over to try to cut her off.
She sliced across the top of the crease and tucked a backhander past Bachetti.
The Welcke twins, who transferred to Boston University from UMaine, teamed up on the power play for the only goal of the first period, with sophomore left wing Luisa Welcke scoring her fourth of the season and sister Lilli making the pass.
Graduate student center and Norwich University transfer Ann-Frederique Guay equalized with her 17th of the season 5:15 into the middle period.
BU built a 3-1 lead on goals by freshman right wing Alex Law, her third, and senior center Lacey Martin’s eighth of the season, which was another power-play marker.
But senior left wing Rahel Enzler gave the Black Bears a lifeline by scoring her sixth with just 22 seconds remaining in the period.
Mikayla Boarder tied it up early in the third period with a breakaway backhander after she blocked a pass at the defensive blue line.
It was the freshman right wing’s fourth of the season.
Luisa Welcke opened the scoring 15:23 into the game.
Andi Calderone had the puck at the point and slid it over to Lilli Welcke in the right faceoff circle.
She made a quick pass to her sister in the inner half of the right circle and Luisa Welcke’s one-timer along the ice beat Bachetti inside the far post for her fourth goal of the season.
Bachetti made a pair of important saves at the end of the period to keep her team within one as another BU power play yielded high-percentage chances for Nadia Mattivi and Clara Yuhn.
Guay tied it up when she jammed home the rebound off a Jamie Grinder wrist shot from the point.
Law answered 2:34 later with a rising wrist shot from the left circle off a neat little drop pass from Catherine Foulem.
Martin expanded the lead when Brooke Disher’s shot from the slot deflected over to her at the right puck and she snuck it past Bachetti.
Enzler cut it to 3-2 off a two-on-one.
She broke down the left wing after taking a pass from Mira Seregeley and beat Pietersen with a wrister into the short side corner.
