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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- It was a back and fourth game on Staten Island Tuesday afternoon, but the River Hawks were able to hold on for a 12-11 victory over Wagner for their first road win of the year.
 
UMass Lowell's record improves to 2-4 with the win, while Wagner drops to .500 at 4-4.
 
Wagner got on the board of their first shot, 4:49 into the game from Patrick McMenamin. Sophomore Sean Tyrrell (Calgary, Alberta) took the lead back scoring two straight goals, his seventh and eighth of the year. Tyrrell's two goals came with 8:33 and 4:39 to go in the first quarter. One minute after his second score, Tyrrell assisted on a Matt Balter (West Sand Lake, N.Y.) goal, giving UMass Lowell a 3-1 lead heading at the first break. The River Hawks kept the pressure on throughout the period, outshooting Wagner 16-3.
 
The second quarter started the same as the first, with Wagner scoring about four minutes in. This time, Wagner continued the scored, with Aaron Denesvich tying the game at three with 8:41 to go in the half. Tyrrell added two more at 7:39 and 6:15 to push his game total to four, and the River Hawk lead to two. Freshman Austin Lane (Aurora, Ontario) added two goals of his own in the final minutes of the frame, putting the River Hawks up 7-3 at halftime.
 
Both teams seemed to use the break to make offensive adjustments, with a flurry of scoring starting the third quarter. Wagner again scored first, just 13 seconds in, to make it a 7-4 game. Almost predictably, given the flow of the first half, the River Hawks quickly answered, Balter netted his second of the day 24 seconds later. William McMenamin then scored his second of the day for Wagner eight seconds after that, capping off a span of three goals in 45 seconds, and bringing Wagner within three, at a score of 8-5. The teams then settled down, Wagner added a goal with 8:51 to go in the third to bring them within two. With 3:21 to go things headed up again with Wagner scoring to make it 8-7, but only for a moment; Chris Litchfield (Burlington, Mass.) scored his second of the year 11 seconds later giving UML a two goal cushion. The River Hawks would get one more before time ran out in the quarter, with Austin Lane completing his second hat trick of the year.
 
Wagner continued their hot starts on the day, getting the first goal of the fourth quarter four minutes in. The River Hawks stuck true to their form as well, responding just over a minute later with Nick Pino's (North Andover, Mass.) first goal of the season, giving UMass Lowell an 11-8 lead. The three-goal cushion wouldn't last long, William McMenamin scored his fourth goal of the game just under two minutes later, bringing the Seahawks back within two. With 3:41 to go in the fourth, McMenamin grabbed a ground ball in front of the UML net and put it past the goalie to bring Wagner within 1. After a defensive stand, the River Hawks got the ball back with two minutes to play in the game. Coach Ed Stephenson called a time out, drawing up a play that resulted in Balter's third goal of the game.  William McMenamin's 6^th goal of the game, coming with 28 seconds left was too little too late, as Balter's goal ended up being the game winner.
 
Freshman goalie Grant Lardieri (Ada, Mich.) came one save short of his career high, he stopped 10 shots on his way to his second win of the season. Matt Sefcik was not far behind in net for Wagner, he had seven.
 
The River Hawks now turn their attention to conference play, they will host Hartford in their America East opener Saturday at 1 p.m. at Cushing Field Complex. Coverage of that game can be found on America East.TV.