Oct. 12, 2011

Live Stats & Text | Game Program

UMass Lowell brings a five-match winning streak into tonight’s game with No. 18 Merrimack, a match which will undoubtedly shape the postseason.

The River Hawks, with four of their last six matches at home beginning tonight, host Saint Anselm Saturday (1:00) and No. 25 Southern Connecticut next Tuesday (7:00) before visiting Pace (Oct. 22) and Assumption (Oct. 26). UMass Lowell caps the regular season on Oct. 29 at home against Le Moyne.

Not only has UMass Lowell won five straight matches (450 minutes), they have all been by shutout, underscoring the defense of seniors Hannah Merullo and Casey Schulze, junior Taylor Hartmann and sophomore Sarah Raye, along with goalkeepers Jill Carlson and Jane Hatzikonstantis.

The River Hawks will have to be at their best tonight as Merrimack sits atop the NE-10 table and ranks second in the Conference with 2.1 goals per game. Tonight’s match is the third straight away from home for the Warriors, who suffered their first loss last week at Franklin Pierce (0-3) but rebounded at Le Moyne (1-0).

Merrimack leads the all-time series against UMass Lowell, 14-4-2 and is unbeaten in the last four meetings (3-0-1). The last time UMass Lowell defeated Merrimack was Nov. 2, 2008, in the first round of the NE-10 Tournament in North Andover, Mass., 1-0 in overtime.

The Warriors also won the last meeting at Cushing Field in 2009 (1-0) which was played on the turf due to a heavy rainfall.