Bears look for bright spots in disappointing loss

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It may take a little time for the University of Maine football team to shake off the disappointment of Saturday’s 24-21 overtime loss at Delaware.

Coach Jack Cosgrove’s Black Bears, who at 5-4 are still on track to have an outstanding season, will nonetheless not realize a couple of its most important preseason goals.

UMaine, which has shared the Atlantic 10 championship the last two seasons while making consecutive trips to the NCAA Division I-AA national quarterfinals, must instead try to finish strong in its last three games in the hope of making 2004 a season to remember.

“It’s one that tough to put away and put behind you,” Cosgrove said during Monday’s Atlantic 10 coaches conference call. “We needed to win to keep our hopes of playing in December alive.”

UMaine appeared to be on the verge of putting Delaware away a couple of times, but had two touchdowns – one offensive, one defensive – called back because of penalties. The most controversial among those who witnessed the contest came in the fourth quarter with the Bears leading 21-14.

Joan Quezada intercepted an Andy Hall pass and returned it 97 yards for the apparent clinching TD with 3:49 left. However, a roughing-the-passer penalty negated the play.

“I still don’t agree with it and won’t ’til I go to my grave,” Cosgrove said. “There’s no way to me it was a late hit.”

Cosgrove said the UMaine defender came across in front of Hall, forcing him to throw sidearm, as he delivered what appeared to be a legal hit in the chest.

Instead, the Bears must swallow hard, regroup, and get ready for Saturday’s nonleague game at Morgan State in Baltimore, Md.

“That’s a big challenge,” Cosgrove admitted. “With the magnitude of the loss that we’ve just gone through, that’s what our job is, to get back onto another football game.”

Freshman quarterback Ron Whitcomb had perhaps his best game in a UMaine uniform, completing 21 of 34 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown. He did not throw an interception for the fourth consecutive game, although he did fumble once.

“We really felt that Ronnie played an outstanding football game again, and continues to improve and meet the challenges of the week-to-week operation of a young quarterback in the A-10,” Cosgrove said. “He was very accurate all day, putting the ball on the money. He really responded in a very big way for us.”

Sophomore Ryan Waller also continued his exceptional play for the Bears at wide receiver. He made nine catches for 107 yards, his second straight game with nine receptions.

Waller leads the team with 43 catches and is second with 418 yards and four touchdowns.

Junior tailback Marcus Walton posted his fifth 100-yard rushing effort of the season against the Blue Hens. He continues to lead the Atlantic 10 with 115.2 yards per game.

Bears still No. 1; players honored

The UMaine men’s hockey team, off to the best start in the history of the program at 7-0-0, remains the No. 1 team in both national college polls.

Coach Tim Whitehead’s Black Bears received 23 first-place votes and earned 494 points in the USA Today/American Hockey Magazine poll and UMaine claimed 30 first-place votes and registered 580 points in the U.S. College Hockey Online poll.

The Bears also have claimed two Hockey East monthly honors. Todd Jackson has been named the CCM Hockey East Player of the Month for October, while Jimmy Howard and Frank Doyle shared the league’s ITECH Hockey East Goaltender of the Month award.

Jackson, a senior forward, scored seven goals and had three assists in October. Four of his goals were shorthanded.

Doyle, a senior, went 3-0 last month, posting a 1.33 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage. Howard, a sophomore, was 3-0 with a 1.33 GAA and a .941 save percentage.

Each goaltender also posted a shutout in October.

UMaine women getting excited

Sunday’s Blue-White scrimmage was the first reminder for the UMaine women’s basketball team that this season promises plenty of excitement.

Having been working in Memorial Gym behind the scenes, the Bears were reminded that playing at Alfond Arena brings out the best in them.

“You get excited when you see this many people come out for your Blue-White scrimmage and they’re all cheering and they’re here to watch everybody play and see what we have in store for this upcoming year,” said senior captain Heather Ernest of Temple.

Even so, it can be a bit confusing watching 10 UMaine players go head-to-head, especially with the defensive intensity the Bears displayed. Thursday night, UMaine will finally have the chance to test its skills against an opponent with a 7 p.m. exhibition game against an Austrian team at Alfond Arena in Orono.

“You have no idea how pumped we’re gonna be to beat up someone else besides our own teammates,” Ernest chuckled, referring to the physical nature of the Bears’ practices.

UMaine should feature a great blend of proven veterans, improved returnees, and talented newcomers. Among the freshmen is Bracey Barker of Bar Harbor, who appeared comfortable in the college setting.

“I know I have a lot to work on, but it’s a big adjustment and I just hope I can learn quickly,” Barker said of the transition from Mount Desert Island High School to UMaine.

“The intensity, definitely [is the biggest difference],” Barker said. “These girls are real quick. You never know if they’re gonna shoot, pass, or drive; just the intensity of the whole game.”

Versyp said Barker is going through the typical adjustment period, but was impressed with the skills the 6-foot-1 guard showed in Sunday’s scrimmage.

“Because of her versatility and her height, she was able to tear apart some of the defense because people were going back door and she could see over that, so she did a good job passing and knocking down some shots,” Versyp said.