STONY BROOK, N.Y. – The UMass Lowell women's occer team (4-7-1, 3-1-0) took down the top seed in the conference, Stony Brook (9-5-0, 3-1-0) in a 2-1 fashion on Sunday afternoon at LaValle Stadium. Sophomore Dunja Mostarac (Belgrade, Serbia) notched her first goal of the season for the River Hawks.

"It's not easy coming here a second year in a row," commented head coach Mira Novak. "Stony Brook is the top team in the league and for us it was if we want to be the best, we need to beat the best. I'm happy with how we competed today under pressure and with the defensive performance staying strong through their attacks."
 
For the third straight game, Kristin Birgisdottir (Mosfellsbaer, Iceland) made an assist for the River Hawks when she headed the ball to sophomore Emily Nelson (Peabody, Mass.) who sent the ball past a defender and the keeper into the back of the net, bringing the River Hawk tally to 1-0 only seven minutes into the first half. 
 
At the half, the River Hawks lead with four shots while the Seawolves recorded two.
 
In the 61st minute, after three corner kicks in a row, the River Hawks made their final attempt when sophomore Kristina Bartsch (Pulheim, Germany) ripped the ball to fellow classmate Mostarac, who headed the ball over the keeper and into the back of the net, increasing the River Hawk lead to 2-0.
 
Stony Brook recorded their only goal of the game with seven minutes remaining when Alyssa Francese received a pass in front of the goal and headed the ball into the top center of the net, bringing the score to 2-1.
 
In a last-ditch effort, the Seawolves attempted a corner kick with 10 seconds remaining, but the attack wasn't enough as the River Hawks defense denied the ball, ending in a final score of 2-1.
 
Up next, the squad will host Vermont on Thursday Oct. 17 to kick-off homecoming weekend with an alumni night celebration, before heading to UAlbany for a 1 p.m. matchup with the Great Danes on Sunday. 

"Last season, Vermont made it really hard to break them down in playoffs," stated Novak. "Defensively they're a very solid team that doesn't concede a lot of goals. A big part on Thursday will be taking control of the game and finishing our chances."