Oct. 21, 2009
Box Score
Photo Gallery: UMass Lowell Field Hockey Senior Night
The River Hawk Report - Field Hockey and Volleyball win
The No. 5 UMass Lowell River Hawks overcame an early deficit to defeat the No. 6 Bentley University Falcons in Northeast-10 Conference action on Wednesday evening at home.
With the win, the River Hawks improve to 15-3 on the year with a 7-2 mark in conference action. The Falcons now sit at 13-4 on the year with a 7-2 clip in NE-10 play.
The Falcons struck first, as senior forward Abbie DeMusis (Guilford, CT) found an opening behind UMass Lowell goalkeeper Amy Carbon (Bellingham, MA) to give Bentley the early 1-0 lead in the sixth minute of play (29:03).
The River Hawks hung in, though, forcing three consecutive penalty corners. Despite their inability to convert their opportunities to goals right away, the ball was in their offensive zone consistently.
Halfway through the first, Carbon came out of the cage to challenge a ball, and Bentley's Stephanie Sideris (Watertown, MA) was in clear position to score. It was a clutch defensive save by Jaime Hadley (Chelmsford, MA) that helped keep the River Hawks in the game.
Their patience paid off, as a momentum shift swung UMass Lowell's way as the first half wound down. In the 32nd minute of play (31:20) Sammy Macy (Tewksbury, MA) hit a rocket from the middle of the circle to score her 22nd tally of the year, assisted by Liz Day (North Andover, MA).
The River Hawks kept the pressure strong and took the 2-1 lead in the 35th minute of play (34:40) on a goal from Katie Enaire (Amesbury, MA). Freshman Sarah Wilcox (Old Town, ME) hit a solid through pass from the 25-yard line and found Enaire right in front of the cage for her 16th goal of the season.
The second half started slow, but Enaire struck again, grabbing a rebound off a Molly Clay (Rockport, MA) shot, right in front of the cage, and snuck the ball behind Bentley netminder Alyssa Sliney (Brewster, MA) for her second goal of the game, giving the River Hawks the 3-1 lead in the 42nd minute of play (41:19).
Bentley wouldn't go down without a fight, though, as Allison St. Jean (Lebanon, ME) brought the Falcons to within one in the 52nd minute of play (51:14).
The River Hawks held on for their 15th victory of the year, though, after outshooting their opponent 14-6 on the night with a 9-2 advantage in the first half.
Carbon made three saves on the night, allowing two goals and Sliney stopped four, allowing three goals.
The River Hawks return to action when they travel to Adelphi on Saturday for their final regular season game of the 2009 campaign. Game time is set for noon in Garden City, NY.
