LOWELL, Mass. -- Senior forward Ryan Dmowski (East Lyme, Conn.) scored the game-winning tally for the UMass Lowell Hockey team with 5:22 left in the third period as the River Hawks defeated RIT in front of 5,673 fans at the Tsongas Center on opening night, which included 1,686 students in attendance.

Dmowski, who scored off a one-time wrister on a pass from sophomore defenseman Croix Evingson (Anchorage, Alaska), tallied a goal and assist in the victory for the River Hawks. 

"I thought it was a very well played game from the standpoint of competitiveness on both sides," said UMass Lowell Head Coach Norm Bazin. "I thought both goalies were excellent, we traded chances and there was a lot of excitement for the fans. We are excited to get two points, but I think tonight could have gone either way."

Both River Hawks goals came in the third period via the power play, which included senior co-captain Connor Wilson's (Calgary, Alta.) tally at 7:11 of the final frame. UMass Lowell finished the night 2-for-6 on the power play and went a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.

RIT's Mark Logan opened the scoring in the game at the 18:41 mark of second stanza. Shaw Cameron and Erik Brown each notched a game-high four shots on goal for the Tigers, while Nick Master (Broomall, Pa.), Ryan Lohin (Chadds Ford, Pa.) and Mattias Goransson (Slottsbron, Sweden) each totaled a team-best three shots on goal for the River Hawks.

Junior goalie Tyler Wall (Leamington, Ont.) notched 25 saves in his 47th career start for the River Hawks, while his counterpart Logan Brackett recorded 19 stops in the losing effort. Wall stopped nine shots in the second period, along with eight shots in the first and third frames.

UMass Lowell returns to action in the series finale against RIT on Saturday, October 13th in the second day of Homecoming Weekend. Game time from the Tsongas Center is 6 p.m. The Hawkey Way Homecoming Festival will be open from 3 to 6 p.m. tomorrow outside the Tsongas Center. 

To purchase season tickets, individual tickets or mini plans, visit www.TsongasCenter.com. To save with a group of 10 or more, contact Jonathan Healy at Jonathan_Healy@uml.edu or by phone at (978) 934-6280.