Box Score
Box Score (PDF)

BURLINGTON, Vt. – The UMass Lowell field hockey team (4-8, 0-2) faced a 1-0 setback at America East Conference opponent, the University of Vermont (1-11, 1-1), on Friday afternoon in Burlington.
 
Junior Sophie Watt (Sawtell, Australia) paced the River Hawks with five shots on the day, while freshman Fiona Fitzgerald (Lexington, Mass.) added three, including two on goal. Rookie goalkeeper Kelsey Federico (Windham, N.H.) logged three saves in the outing, as well.
 
The River Hawks' offense pressured early in the first half, earning a corner attempt that was tipped just wide. Vermont took control of the ball and forced back-to-back corners of their own, however, the UMass Lowell defense was able to extinguish the opportunities.
 
UMass Lowell threatened with seven minutes to go in the first during a scrum in front of the cage, as senior Bianca Jones (Watertown, Mass.) was able to put a backhanded shot on target, but it was knocked away by the opposing keeper.
 
With one minute remaining in the period, Vermont was issued a card and the River Hawks earned a corner, during which sophomore Georgia Cowderoy (Ashmore, Queensland, Australia) fired a slap shot that was stopped by the diving goalkeeper, sending the teams into the break knotted at 0-0.  
 
Coming out of halftime, Vermont gained momentum in the first several minutes. The home squad was then able to break the game open just nine minutes into the period when Marzana Fiedtkou (Georgetown, Guyana) made a great defensive save at the goal line, but Molly Higgins followed the rebound in and scooped the ball up and into the back of the cage, giving the Catamounts a 1-0 edge.
 
The River Hawks continued to battle through the waning minutes, forcing one last corner in the final seconds, but the shot from the top of the circle was blocked and pushed out of play, sealing the 1-0 decision in favor of Vermont.
 
Friday's contest marked the 12th meeting between UMass Lowell and Vermont in the sport of field hockey. Vermont now owns a 9-2-1 lead in the all-time series. The River Hawks will return to action on Sunday, October 12 when they kick off a four-game homestand against Bucknell University at 1 p.m.