The Huskies got on the board first at the 27:00 mark as America East Offensive Player of the Year Atha Kirkopoulos sent a corner kick right in front of the net in which sophomore Joe Parrish headed home for a 1-0 lead.

"In the first half we scored, but both teams had chances," said NU head coach Ed Matz. "It could have easily been 1-1, but we took advantage of our opportunity."

Vermont knotted it at one just 1:28 into the second half when junior T.J. Mead stole a pass at midfield, dribbled twice and led his classmate Matt Chavez. Chavez then slid the ball just inside the left post past a diving Sergio Saccoccio for his second tally of the season.

It would stay locked at one with both teams having opportunities, but coming up short. NU senior Nate Houghton had a great chance to give the Huskies the lead with just under six minutes left in the contest, as he headed a ball toward the top right corner of the net that UVM goalkeeper Ryan Corry had to jump to save.

The game looked to be heading into overtime until NU sophomore Michael Cipriano gathered the ball at midfield and blasted a cross to Kirkopoulos who beat his defender and took it to the goal. Corry came out to try to cut off his angle, but Kirkopoulos booted it past the charging goalie backpost for the game winner. The goal was his ninth of the season and came at the 87:03 mark.

"I was hoping we could add another goal and keep it out of overtime with Vermont winning their semifinal match on penalty kicks," Matz said.

For his play, Kirkopoulos was named the championship's Most Outstanding Player and was joined on the All-Championship team by teammates Cipriano, Nate Houghton and Jochen Beck; Keli Helgason, Tim Parisi and Adam Wallace of Vermont, Eric Masi and Brendan Hankard of New Hampshire and Ryan Carr and Jonathan Clark of Hartford.

"This year takes on a special meaning because of all the support we've had, and the crowd we had coming out in this rainy weather," Matz added. "Having homefield advantage these past two games has been a huge factor."

Northeastern awaits the pairings and brackets for the 48-team NCAA Championship. Those announcements will be made at 4:30 p.m. ET on Monday on ESPN News.

Scoring
First Half:
NU - Joe Parrish (Atha Kirkopoulos) 27:00

Second Half:
UVM - Matt Chavez (T.J. Mead) 46:28
NU - Atha Kirkopoulos (Michael Cipriano) 87:03

Shots
Vermont, 9
Northeastern, 8

Corner Kicks
Vermont, 6
Northeastern, 7

Offsides
Vermont, 8
Northeastern, 0

Fouls
Vermont, 12
Northeastern, 16

Saves
Vermont, Ryan Corry 4
Northeastern, Sergio Saccoccio 2