Box Score Oct. 31, 2011
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Melissa Effertz (Oceanside, Calif.) scored twice as part of a three-goal outburst in the second half to lead the River Hawks over Merrimack College, 3-2, and claim their eighth Northeast-10 Championship in program history. Senior defender Kayla Littig (Carver, Mass.), who scored the other UMass Lowell tally, was named the NE-10 Tournament MVP.
The River Hawks improve to 17-3 on the season and await the Selection Show to determine their seeding in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. The Warriors fell to 17-2 on the campaign.
Merrimack took a commanding two-goal in the first half on scores by Candice Waldie (North Andover, Mass.) and April Daugherty (Wakefield, R.I.). Waldie put the Warriors on the board with a rebound tally after a pair of saves by Melanie Hopkins (Harwich, Mass.)at 4:23.
The second score came as Daugherty tipped in a long-range shot by Victoria DeLacey (Charlton, MA) at 15:06.
The momentum flipped in the second half as the River Hawks scored three times in less than five minutes.
Effertz started off the fireworks with a tip-in tally at 54:48. On a penalty corner, Rachel McCarthy (Reading, Mass.)ripped a shot at the net that was deflected past the goaltender by Effertz.
Just under a minute later, McCarthy repeated the action only to have Littig tip the shot this time to tie the game at 2-2.
With the crowd whipped into a frenzy, UMass Lowell kept up the attack. McCarthy chased down a ball into the corner and crossed a pass into the circle. The ball landed on the stick on Effertz, who flung a wrist shot into the net to take the lead at 59:25.
The River Hawks' defense then clamped down to hold off any last ditch efforts by the Warriors and claim their eighth NE-10 title.
UMass Lowell's Hopkins totaled five saves to pick up her 16th win of the season, while Merrimack's Kerri Bergquist (Mashpee, MA) made eight saves.
Joining Littig on the All-Tournament Team were defenders Carrie Dresser (Plaistow, N.H.) and Sarah Wilcox (Old Town, Maine).
