SMITHFIELD, R.I.— Sophomore Shannon Groffie (Toms River, N.J.) and freshman Maggie Davenport (Windermere, Fla.) scored second-half goals to lead the UMass Lowell women's soccer team to a 2-0 victory at Bryant on Thursday afternoon.
 
The River Hawks improve to 2-5, Bulldogs fall to 1-7 on the season.
 
"I thought another really good effort by our back three and our goal keeper Julia Schneider kept us in the game," said Head Coach Joel Bancroft. "We were scrappy, we came out in the second half and scored a quick goal, changing the complexion."
 
Groffie tallied her second goal of the year and Davenport's go-ahead goal late in the game was her first tally of the season. Julia Schneider (Bridgewater, Mass.) logged her second shutout of the year, tallying four saves in the outing.
 
The home team outshot the guests, 6-3 in the scoreless first half. In a primarily defense oriented first half, the River Hawks gave themselves a few opportunities trying to find the back of the net. UMass Lowell's chances came early in the first half, including a shot in the 18th minute by forward Emily Duchesne (Hooksett, N.H.), blasting a shot high over the net. The guest only other opportunity came in the 22nd minute off a corner kick where Isabelle Marquez (Seattle, Wash.) received the ball in the box, made a move to beat the defender before sending the shot wide of the net.
 
In the late minutes of the first half, Bulldogs forward Alex Ralph threated with a one-on-one opportunity against Schneider, who came up big defensively with a diving stop.
 
The River Hawks struck first in the 45th minute, as Groffie drilled a shot across the goal and found the lower left corner in the back of the net.  The River Hawks were not done there. In the 69th minute, Maggie Davenport lofted a shot from 30 yards out, over goal keeper Rachel Brightman's head.
 
The Bulldogs outshot the River Hawks 16-8 but a strong outing by the back line and goal keeper helped UMass Lowell preserve the win. Three different Bryant forwards registered three shots each, none with enough power to get by Schneider and find the back of the net.
 
Thursday's contest marked the eighth meeting ever between UMass Lowell and Bryant. Bryant now leads the all-time series 7-6. The River Hawks continue on the road, traveling to Central Connecticut for a 3 p.m. contest on Sunday, September 20.