Saturday, March 24 vs. No. 1 UAlbany (7pm)
(Cushing Field Complex; Lowell, Mass.)
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SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: UMass Lowell owns a 4-4 overall record (1-0 AE), after a loss to Massachusetts (13-6) on Wednesday and a win at Binghamton (14-10) on Saturday in the America East opener. The River Hawks have already tied their win total from each of the last two seasons. UMass Lowell has won three of its last four contests heading into the Saturday matchup vs. the Great Danes. The River Hawks have scored 10+ goals in five of eight games this season.

Senior attackman Matt Balter (Albany, N.Y.) scored a season-high four goals and freshman goalie Hunter Braun (Hartland, Mich.) notched a school-record 21 saves in Saturday's road win at Binghamton. It marked the second America East conference win in school history and the first time the River Hawks have beat the Bearcats in four tries since joining Division I. UMass Lowell scored seven goals in the second half to seal the victory, after Binghamton scored five four-quarter goals. Senior Sean Tyrrell (Calgary, Alta.) added three points (2g,1a), while Sam Klingsporn (Aloha, Ore.) and Harry Morrill (Hyde Park, Mass.) each amassed two goals apiece. Sophomore Daniel Cozzi (Reading, Mass.) scored a big goal with 1:59 to play in the fourth quarter to halt Binghamton's four-goal comeback with less than five minutes to play in the contest. The River Hawks got out to an early 3-0 lead in the first quarter on goals by Jon Phillips (Delta, B.C.), Bain Schroeder (Ellicott City, Md.) and Klingsporn. UMass Lowell owned a 7-4 lead at halftime.Braun notched eight saves in the second quarter alone for his second 20+ save performance of the season.

Balter leads the team with 16 goals, while Tyrrell is first on the team with 31 points and 20 assists. Senior defender Will Puduski (Westford, Mass.) leads the team with 37 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers. Phillips ranks second on the team with 15 goals in eight games, which includes seven goals in his last three contests.

UMass Lowell has a team ranks second among America East teams with 37.9 shots and 24.3 shots on goal so far this season. The River Hawks also rank second in America East with 33.8 ground balls per contest. 

SCOUTING THE GREAT DANES: UAlbany enters Saturday's game with a 7-0 overall record (1-0 AE), after a 19-11 win vs. Canisius on Tuesday. Connor Fields notched eight points (5g,3a) in the victory. The Great Danes lead the country scoring 16.29 goals per game. Fields' 7.71 points per game and 4.14 assists per game lead the nation. Fields has posted 54 points (25g,29a) in seven games for UAlbany this season. UAlbany goalie JD Colarusso's 6.11 GAA also leads the country. 

BRAUN NAMED AMERICA EAST DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Freshman goalie Hunter Braun was named America East Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.  Braun recorded 37 saves in two games last week, including a school-record 21 saves in the 14-10 win at Binghamton in the America East opener on Saturday afternoon. Braun owned a .610 save percentage during the 1-1 week for the River Hawks. He has started six of eight games for UMass Lowell in his freshman campaign, posting a 4-3-0 record with a 10.89 GAA and a .556 save percentage. His 89 saves and 12.71 saves per contests leads all America East goalies and ranks sixth among Div. I goalies.

A FEW WORDS FROM SAM KLINGSPORN ON THE MATCHUP: "It's exciting to have them come up here and play us, but every game is kind of the same for us, we are just trying to take one step and one game at a time. Just trying to prepare and trying to win."

BALTER ON THE OFFENSIVE: Matt Balter is five goals away from breaking his single-season career record of 16 goals, which he set in his sophomore campaign of 2016. He has posted goals in seven of eight games for the River Hawks, to go along with five multi-goal games to his credit in his senior season. In his UMass Lowell career, Balter has totaled 49 career goals in 45 career games. 

EXTRA MAN OPPORTUNITIES: The River Hawks lead America East with a 56.3% EMO conversion rate (9 for 16), which ranks eighth among NCAA Div. I teams. UMass Lowell scored six EMO goals in the first three games of the year and have notched only three EMO goals in the last four contests. Jon Phillips has scored six of the nine EMO goals for the River Hawks this season through eight contests.  

AMERICA EAST LEADERS: Sean Tyrrell's 3.88 points per game ranks fourth in America East and his 2.5 assists per game ranks second among America East players. Will Puduski ranks third in AE with 4.6 ground balls per game and 1.6 caused turnovers per contest. 

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