Albany, N.Y. – In a hard-fought America East title game, the UMass Lowell women's soccer team (7-9-5, 4-3-1 AE) was taken down by UAlbany (14-6-2, 5-2-1 AE) in a 5-1 decision on Sunday afternoon at Casey Stadium.
 
"They worked so hard to get to this stage," said interim head coach Mira Novak. "It was a story about how we came together as a group and built the team chemistry. It wasn't meant to be today, but I'm really proud of all of them and what they achieved this year."
 
After the game, four River Hawks were honored with America East tournament awards. Julia Schneider (Bridgewater, Mass.), Rachel Morrier (Plaistow, N.H.), and Lily Fabian (Monson, Mass.) were named to the All-Championship team, while Maggie Davenport (Windermere, Fla.) was a recipient of the Elite 18 Award, which honors the student-athlete with the highest GPA in the match.
 
UAlbany's high-powered offense struck first, with a goal by Jada Colbert just 43 seconds into the game. Mariah Williams sent a through ball into the box, and Colbert notched her third goal of the season.
 
The Great Danes doubled their lead in the 19^th minute, as Jasmine Colbert scored from six yards out, and Williams tallied her second assist of the game.
 
The River Hawks nearly got on the board after a shot by Rachel Morrier hit the crossbar. Dunja Mostarac (Belgrade, Serbia) and Giulia Rabbito (Chelmsford, Mass.) had chances to score off the rebound, but UAlbany managed to prevent a UMass Lowell goal.
 
UAlbany went into halftime in control, with a 2-0 lead and with 12 shots to UMass Lowell's 1.
 
The River Hawks came out strong in the second half, but Jasmine Colbert scored her second goal of the game in the 61^st minute after a free kick by Caroline Kopp, putting the Great Danes up 3-0.
 
In the 76^th minute, Fabian scored her second goal of the America East postseason with a high shot over the UAlbany goalkeeper, after a one-touch pass from Veronica Morrier (Plaistow, N.H.) to bring the score to 3-1. This game marked the first time in the past five games that UAlbany allowed a goal.
 
UAlbany responded with two more goals late in the game, with tallies by Megan Cavanaugh and Christina Cernuto, and the Great Danes took home the conference title.
 
Julia Schneider made nine saves in the game, her third time stopping at least nine shots this season. She finishes her career with 354 saves in a River Hawk uniform.
 
Rachel Morrier ends her career with 63 career points (27 goals, nine assists), which is first all-time in the Division I era at UMass Lowell. This season, she led the team in minutes, followed by Abigail Drezek (Cumberland, R.I.) and Veronica Morrier.
 
Katelyn Vieira (Warwick, R.I.) finishes with 34 career points, while Davenport and Jaymee Luke (Las Vegas, Nev.) each end with four.
 
"For any senior, once you get to playoffs, you know it can be your last game," Novak said. "They really stepped up during the playoffs. Today, they were great leaders, and they really care for the team. I wish I had them for one more year because they're great people, great players, and I'm really proud of them."