Stockford goal lifts Maine by Niagara

ORONO – Justin Stockford scored the go-ahead goal in the second half as the University of Maine men’s soccer team held off Niagara for a 3-1 win Monday in the Black Bear Invitational.

Quinnipiac defeated Canisius 2-1 in the afternoon’s first game, lifting the Bobcats to the tournament championship.

Eric Lemont gave Maine a 1-0 lead when he scored off a Cooper Friend corner kick in the first half. Niagara tied the game one minute into the second half, but Stockford scored at the 57:59 mark. Matthew Bernal scored an insurance goal for 1-1 Maine. Chad Mongeon made two saves on 8 shots.

Ewan Henderson scored for 0-2 Niagara and Eric Sullivan stopped three of 17 shots.

Francis Mavula, who scored Quinnipiac’s game-winner in overtime Monday, was named the tournament MVP. UMaine players named to the all-tourney team were Bernal, Friend and Brian Leonard.

Women’s soccer

Maine 1, Sacred Heart 0

At Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland, Katie Hodge scored off an assist from Annie Hamel eight minutes into the second half to lift the Black Bears to victory over the Pioneers.

Tanya Adorno made eight saves on as many shots for 2-0 UMaine, which outshot Sacred Heart 20-8.

Leslie Konsig registered seven saves for the 0-1-1 Pioneers.

Field hockey

Temple 2, Maine 1

At Philadelphia, Monica Jiao scored the game-winning goal with just 59 seconds left in the game, lifting the Owls past the Black Bears.

Jiao scored off an assist from Haley Dervinis, whose goal with 4:56 left tied the game. Erin Conroy made 10 saves on 12 shots for 2-0 Temple.

Maine opened the scoring at 19:39 of the second half when Karyn Magno scored from Emily Dooling and Amie Dubois. Jaye Lance stopped five of 14 shots for the 1-1 Bears.

Football

Nebraska moves back to Top 25

Nebraska moved back into the Top 25 for the first time in nearly a year Monday, earning the No. 23 ranking following a 17-7 season-opening win against No. 24 Oklahoma State.

“I think it is important,” Cornhuskers coach Frank Solich said. “It’s something that this program has been all about, being in the Top 25 and being a top football team in the country.”

In the first regular season Associated Press college football poll, the biggest movement was caused by Southern California’s 23-0 win at Auburn. The Trojans earned six first-place votes from the sports writers and broadcasters on the AP panel and moved up four spots to No. 4. Auburn plummeted 11 places to No. 17.

The top three teams remained the same, with Oklahoma at No. 1 followed by defending national champion Ohio State and Miami. Michigan dropped one spot to No. 5 after beating Central Michigan 45-7.

The USA Today/ESPN coaches poll had the same top three as the AP poll. Texas was fourth and USC fifth in the coaches poll.

Nebraska’s run of being in 348 consecutive polls ended Sept. 29, 2002, following a 36-14 loss to Iowa State. The Cornhuskers went on to lose seven games last year, their worst season since 1961.

Nebraska began this season outside the Top 25 for the first time since 1969.

“It’s great to get back in,” Solich said. “I think it was obvious to everyone, including ourselves, that we had to prove ourselves to get back in. Now we have to show that we deserve to be in there by playing well.”

Oklahoma has 30 of the 65 first-place votes and 1,566 points. The Sooners are 28 points ahead of Ohio State, which won its 15th straight game Saturday, 28-9 over then-No. 17 Washington and has 25 firsts.

Miami has two first-place votes, USC has six and No. 5 Michigan has the remaining two.