LOWELL, Mass. - Senior forward Bianca Jones (Watertown, Mass.) tallied a pair of second half goals to propel the UMass Lowell field hockey (1-0) team to a 2-0 victory against La Salle (0-2) in the 2014 season opener at Wicked Blue Field in Lowell, Mass.
 
"I think that we were very prepared for this game," said head coach Shannon Hlebichuk. "Our expectation was to win and we followed through with that. I was especially pleased with the improvement in our ball movement today compared to last year. Everything about our play just looked cleaner and we took care of our chances when we had them.
 
"Any time you're on your home field in front of your home crowd you want to win. We had a great effort from freshman goalkeeper Kelsey Federico in her first collegiate start. We're excited about what the future brings, but we'll certainly have to build off of today and improve every game."
 
The River Hawks controlled the pace of play, outshooting the Explorers, 15-5, in the decision, while forcing 10 corners compared to three for the visitors. Jones, who led the offense, was making her first appearance in over a year after missing last season due to injury.
 
"I was just happy to get back out on the field and be with the team," said Jones. "I watched every game last year, so it helped me learn. You have to have confidence on the forward line, so I just kept telling myself that I was going to score in my first game back."
 
Sophomore Eleonore Agneessens (Brussels, Belgium) recorded the first chance of the day for UMass Lowell less than four minutes into the game when she sent a backhand shot just high. Later in the half, Jones threatened to get the team on the board, stealing the ball from a defender before dribbling into a 1-on-1 situation with the La Salle goalkeeper, but it was kicked out of play. The River Hawks continued to pressure with three corners in four minutes, however they were unable to convert, keeping the game scoreless heading into the break.
 
After two more UMass Lowell corners early in the second half, the Explorers registered their first shot on goal with 29 minutes remaining in the outing, as Sophie Lozowski fired straight across the end line into the pads of freshman goalkeeper Kelsey Federico (Windham, N.H.). The River Hawks broke the 0-0 stalemate with 18:39 left to play when Agneessens sent a cross from the right side of the cage to Jones, who was set up near the left post, for the tip in to give the home squad a 1-0 advantage.
 
Jones struck again, this time finding the back of the cage after collecting a rebound off the keeper's pads to extend her team's lead to 2-0. Federico, who totaled four saves on the afternoon, turned away back-to-back La Salle attempts on a last-second corner to seal the decision.
 
With today's outcome, the all-time series between UMass Lowell and La Salle is now tied at 1-1. UMass Lowell returns to action tomorrow, Sunday, August 31, when the team hosts Longwood University of the Big South Conference to wrap up the Opening Weekend Tournament at 1 p.m.