Bowdoin College of Brunswick finished as the NCAA Division III national runner-up last season.

The University of Maine-Farmington captured its first North Atlantic Conference title.

Both teams have continued to build on that success this season.

Stephanie Pemper’s Polar Bears are off to a 9-0 start and are ranked No. 1 in the country in the d3hoops.com poll.

The Beavers of Jamie Beaudoin have won six of their first seven contests and share first place in the NAC.

Tonight at 7, Bowdoin and UMF square off in an anticipated contest at Dearborn Gymnasium in Farmington.

The Beavers have the luxury of playing on their home court, where they’re 4-0 this season and went 10-3 a year ago.

Any advantage is appreciated against a Bowdoin ballclub that boasts a sparkling 90-7 record (.928) dating back to the start of the 2001-02 season. UMF is the last instate opponent to beat the Polar Bears – a 67-65 decision on Feb. 11, 2003 at Farmington.

Bowdoin features a deep and talented lineup led by sophomore forward Eileen Flaherty, who is averaging a team-high 12.8 points and 6.1 rebounds.

The squad also features a strong contingent of five Maine high school products. That group is led by senior co-captains Alison Smith of Stockton Springs (Bangor High) and Erica Nickerson of Benton (Lawrence High).

Smith is averaging 8.6 points and 5.1 rebounds, while Nickerson has contributed 8.4 points and 4.0 rebounds.

Bowdoin, which has put up 71 points per game while limiting opponents to 44 points per outing, also features McAuley of Portland grads Marisa Berne (6.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg) and Justine Pouravelis (6.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg).

UM-Farmington is loaded with former Maine high school standouts.

The Beavers are paced by sophomores Kari Simpson of Wells and Karen Sirois of Augusta (Cony High), both All-NAC first-team picks last season. Simpson, a 6-foot-1 forward, leads the team with 15.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.3 steals per game. Sirois is averaging 7.1 points and 4.0 assists and 3.6 steals.

The balanced team also includes Belfast High product Danielle Mayer (7.3 ppg), Meagan Cyr of Howland and Penobscot Valley High (7.3 ppg), along with senior co-captains Brandi Rideout of Mattawamkeag and Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln (5.9 ppg) and Kate LaHaye of Belfast (5.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg).

UM-Farmington also has excelled because of its defense, limiting opponents to 45 ppg while scoring 68 per contest.

The Beavers are coming off an extended layoff, not having played since a Dec. 11 win over the University of New England. The Polar Bears posted victories Dec. 29 and 30 in Arizona over host Hendrix College and Rust Colleges (Miss.).

Atlantic 10 ranks 10th

The Atlantic 10 football conference finished with a 10th-place ranking among all 28 Division I leagues for the 2004 season in the final Sagarin Conference Rankings.

This is the highest finish ever for the Division I-AA A-10, which is also ranked higher than three I-A conferences for the first time in league history.

The A-10’s ranking of 65.74 points puts it ahead of Conference USA (11th with 65.66), the Sun Belt (12th with 60.24), and the Mid-American Conference (15th with 55.69). Teams from the A-10 went 29-12 versus non-conference teams with five of those losses coming against Division I-A bowl teams.

UM-Farmington inducts five

The University of Maine-Farmington recently inducted five new members into its Athletics Hall of Fame and recognized two teams for their outstanding achievements.

Field hockey standout Gabrielle Morin Cote, a 1988 graduate, along with field hockey player Lisa Richardson Robinson (1989), golfer and baseball player Jon Ladd (1991), soccer and baseball player Leroy “Bubba” Ashby (1988) and soccer player Fred Conlogue (1988) were inducted into the UMF hall.

UMF also honored the 1986 men’s soccer team that played in the national championship game and the 1988 field hockey squad that earned the Maine Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women District 5 title.

Westfield State honors Jeffrey

Jay Jeffrey of Bangor recently was recognized as the co-MVP of the Westfield State men’s soccer team.

Jeffrey, a senior midfielder, started all 16 games for the 8-6-2 Owls, posting two goals. He also earned all-conference, second-team honors.

Sweeping ice for charity

Members of the University of Maine business school faculty and the UMaine women’s hockey team will play a 10-minute game of broomball on the ice during the period intermissions of the UMaine men’s hockey game against Northeastern Jan. 29.

The game is a fundraiser for the Children’s Miracle Network and participants hope to raise $5,000 or more. Volunteers will man a phone bank (581-4880) to receive pledges during the men’s game, which will be broadcast by Maine TV stations WABI (Channel 5) of Bangor and WMTW (Ch. 8) of Portland.

Volunteers will also collect donations at Alfond Arena and at various locations on the Orono campus. More information can be obtained by calling 581-1968.