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ALBANY, N.Y. – Freshman Sophie Gehrels (Zeist, Utrecht, Netherlands) found the back of the cage in the 90th minute to propel the UMass Lowell field hockey team (6-5, 1-0 AE) to a 2-1 upset at No. 18 UAlbany (4-5, 1-1 AE) on Friday afternoon.
 
The victory, which marked the River Hawks' first win ever against the Great Danes, was also UMass Lowell's first win against a nationally ranked opponent since moving to Division I. In addition, it was the program's first win in its America East opener since joining the league in 2013.  
 
After the Great Danes accounted for three shots in the first overtime period and the first three attempts in the second, sophomore Anouk Lalande (Brussels, Belgium) broke into the circle and dished a cross-cage pass to Gehrels, who sent home the one-timer for the River Hawks' fourth overtime win this season.
 
"We played a fantastic, full 90 minutes today," said Head Coach Shannon Hlebichuk. "We were structured, poised and disciplined in all facets of our game. This is the first win over a ranked opponent in our short Division I history. As a coaching staff, we couldn't be more proud of their game play today, but especially the preparation the entire team put in this week. All the details make a difference and it certainly showed today."
 
The sides played an evenly-matched first half, trading possessions and combining for nine shots. Both keepers made a pair of saves in the first 35, but it was UMass Lowell that would break the scoreless tie in the 32nd minute on a corner opportunity. On that play, freshman Katie Lynes (Oakville, Ontario) collected the rebound off her own initial shot and lifted a second attempt up into the top left corner of the net to give her team the 1-0 edge at the break.
 
Coming out of halftime, the UAlbany offense put the pressure on with a 7-1 shot advantage in the first 16 minutes of second-half action. In the 55th minute, the Great Danes erased the difference and knotted the score at 1-1, as a scrum in front of the cage led to a touch by Liz Ryan that bounced just over Eva Berkhout's (Amersfoort, Utrecht, Netherlands) outstretched stick.
 
Berkhout finished the day with nine saves. UAlbany took a slight, 11-9 advantage in shots on goal.
 
The River Hawks will return to action on Sunday, October 1 when they continue America East play against Maine at 1 p.m. at Wicked Blue Field.