Entering Thursday night’s game against Mercer University, University of Maine senior midfielder Luise Reinwald had scored three goals in 56 career games.
Reinwald now has five career goals after registering her first two-goal game to lead the Black Bears to a home-opening 3-1 victory over Mercer at the New Balance Sports Complex in Orono.
UMaine is now 1-1, and Mercer fell to 2-1.
The 5-foot-8 native of Munich, Germany, broke a 1-1 tie by heading home a Britta Denny corner kick in the 25th minute and added a valuable insurance goal in the 68th minute with a perfectly placed strike with the inside of her right foot from 22 yards out.
Abbey Thornton and Victoria Dungey assisted on her second goal.
UMaine head coach Scott Atherley said Reinwald has “great instincts all over the field” and noted that she feels “more secure coming forward this season because she knows someone will cover for her.”
Being a holding midfielder, Reinwald plays farther back than the other starting midfielders, Thornton and Dungey.
Reinwald now has two goals and two assists in her last four games dating back to last season.
She had two assists and converted a penalty kick in the shootout victory over Vermont in the America East championship game a year ago. She was chosen to the all-tourney team and she was also an All-America East second team choice. She was an All-America East preseason selection.
Transfers Isabella Meadows (UConn) and Sandrine Brault (Oklahoma State) teamed up to give UMaine a 1-0 lead just 1:01 into the game when Meadows poked home a rebound after Mercer goalie Ariel Bernard mishandled Brault’s cross.
Olivia Bori equalized with a header off a Marianna Rapani throw-in for Mercer five minutes later. It was her second goal of the season.
Atherley said he was “very pleased” with his players’ performances and said they played with much more composure on the ball than they did in the season-opening 1-0 loss at the University of Rhode Island.
Elena Barenberg finished with five saves for UMaine, and Bernard wound up with three saves.
UMaine attempted 16 shots to Mercer’s 11. Each team had six shots on goal.
UMaine will entertain 2-0 Sacred Heart at noon Sunday.