UMass Lowell women's soccer forward
Stephanie Kemp (Mansfield, Mass.) has earned the America East Rookie of the Week honor, as announced by the conference Monday morning.
Not only did the freshman record her first career goal as a River Hawk, but she went on to total two more goals giving her a hat trick in the 4-1 victory over the UMBC Retrievers on October 6.
Kemp notched two goals in the first half of the contest when she received identical passes down the right side of the field less than 10 minutes apart from each other. Each time, ripping the ball passed the UMBC keeper into the left side of the net, increasing the deficit to 3-0.
Adding to her tally in the second half, Kemp stepped up after a Retriever foul to convert the penalty kick, topping off the hat trick and bringing the River Hawk total to 4-0.
With the three-goal performance, Kemp is now second on the team in goals (3) and third in points (6).
The award marks the first weekly recognition for the River Hawks this season, and first Rookie of the Week since
Emily Nelson's (Peabody, Mass.) hat trick over Binghamton last season on October 7. In addition to the conference award, she was also named River Hawk of the Week for her efforts. The "River Hawk of the Week" is chosen in voting by the UMass Lowell Athletic Communications staff. It honors the top athlete, male or female, based on performance during the previous week of competition.
