HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – Cindy Blodgett scored 27 points and Stacey Porrini notched her first double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds as Maine held on to beat Hofstra 65-61 in their mutual America East basketball opener Thursday night at the Physical Fitness Center.

Maine continues on to Philadelphia for Saturday’s 1 p.m. contest against league foe Drexel.

The 2-3 Black Bears led 36-25 at the break and began the second half with a 14-4 run, opening up what appeared to be a comfortable 21-point lead with 15:22 to go. However, the 1-4 Flying Dutchwomen outscored Maine 32-15 the rest of the way, including a 13-4 spurt in the last four minutes, and closed the gap to 63-60 with 54 seconds to play.

Tracey Smith hit a 3-pointer for the Dutch to make it a three-point ballgame, but on the ensuing possession, Maine ran 20 seconds off the clock before Blodgett threw up an “airball” from just inside the free-throw line. However, Porrini hit the follow and put Maine up by five. The Dutch could only muster one free throw the rest of the way.

“It was a pass,” Blodgett said of her ill-fated jumper, with tongue firmly in cheek.

Freshman Jamie Cassidy almost got a double-double of her own for the Bears, finishing with 12 points and eight rebounds. Maine outrebounded Hofstra 50-33, including a 27-14 advantage in the second half.

“We let them have a few too many defensive rebounds, especially in the first half,” said Hofstra coach Leslie Schlegel-Danowski. “They did what they had to do.”

For the Bears, the win was a resounding reminder that the conference teams are not going to just roll over and play dead.

“This game was not tougher than we expected,” said Maine coach Joanne Palombo-McCallie. “We have to continue taking the season game by game.”

Blodgett added six rebounds and four assists to her point total, while freshman point guard Amy Vachon registered eight rebounds and a game-high seven assists while committing only one turnover.

Maine went 10-for-30 from the field and turned the ball over 13 times in the second half. Hofstra didn’t shoot much better in the half, connecting on only 39 percent of its attempts, but the Dutch committed only six turnovers and outscored the Bears 15-8 from the foul line.

“It was a tough game, but I was proud of our composure at the end of the game,” said Maine coach Joanne Palombo-McCallie. “I think we took some silly shots and lost a little focus down the stretch…. Hofstra just kept fighting and fighting.”

Meg O’Brien led the Dutch with 17 points and six steals, including four in the second half. Smith scored 12 points for the hosts, while Kate Gordon finished with eight points and seven rebounds.

“They really didn’t quit,” Schlegel-Danowski said of her team’s second-half performance. “They found a way to come back and didn’t ever give up.”

For the second consecutive year, Maine opened its conference season with an unusually tight win. Last year, the Bears began league play with a two-point victory over eventual seventh-place finisher Boston University.

“I think it’s a growing process,” Palombo said. “It takes time to get on the same page philosophically, especially when we have four sophomores and five freshmen.”

We need to focus on staying more intense,” said Porrini, who had combined for only eight points in her previous three games. “Once we got up by 20, our focus faltered, and we can’t let that happen.”

Black Bears 65, Dutchmen 61

Maine (2-3) Hofstra (1-4)

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

K. Clark 1 5 0 0 2 O’Brien 4 12 8 10 17

Danes 2 4 1 2 5 Morrissey 1 6 2 6 4

Porrini 6 14 0 1 12 Gordon 3 10 2 2 8

Blodgett 9 19 7 8 27 Mulqueen 3 7 0 0 8

Carver 1 3 1 1 3 Smith 4 9 2 2 12

DeShong 0 1 0 0 0 Anderson 0 0 0 0 0

McCormick 1 4 0 0 2 Rivera 1 4 0 0 2

Stubbs 0 1 0 0 0 Duffy 2 8 1 3 6

Vachon 1 5 0 1 2 Botts 1 2 0 0 2

Cassidy 4 7 4 4 12 Hamill 1 2 0 0 2

A. Clark 0 0 0 0 0

Totals 25 63 13 17 65 Totals 20 60 15 23 61

Maine 36 65

Hofstra 25 61

3-pt. goals: Maine (2-10): Danes 0-1, Porrini 0-1, Blodgett 2-5, Vachon 0-3; Hofstra (6-24): O’Brien 1-6, Gordon 0-1, Mulqueen 2-6, Smith 2-5, Rivera 0-2, Duffy 1-4