Box Score

LOWELL, Mass. – Despite being locked in a scoreless battle for more than 50 minutes, a lone, fourth-quarter goal proved to be the difference, as the UMass Lowell field hockey team (1-1) succumbed to No. 18 Syracuse (2-0), 1-0, on Sunday afternoon.
 
"I'm super impressed with our team's competitive spirit from the opening whistle to the closing whistle," said Head Coach Shannon Hlebichuk. "We asked a lot of them today and they showed up."
 
The River Hawks held the advantage in shots on goal, 12-2, and on corners, 6-4, but Charlotte DeVries would tally the game's only goal in the 51st minute to push the Orange to victory.  
 
The teams traded possessions early on before the River Hawks threatened on a corner opportunity in the waning seconds of the first thanks to back-to-back attempts from freshman Sofie Knook (Amsterdam, Netherlands) and sophomore Jenna Berger (Waterloo, Ontario).
 
Just over three minutes into the second quarter, the River Hawks pressured again, this time when a diving tip by senior Morgan Irons (Bordentown, N.J.) was slapped away by SU's Sarah Sinck to keep the game scoreless. Freshman Kate Miller (Cherry Hill, N.J.) had a chance of her own in the 24th minute on a breakaway, but the teams would head into the break knotted at 0-0.
 
UMass Lowell forced three straight corners early in the third before the Orange put its first shot on goal in the 38th minute, but Knook made a solid stick stop for the defensive save.
 
Both sides continued to battle for chances down the stretch. Junior Sophie Kroeze (Laren, North Holland, Netherlands) had an attempt reach the goal line in the 50th minute that was stopped by a diving sweep from the visitors' Carolin Hoffmann. Less than a minute later, DeVries put the difference-maker on the board when she capitalized on a 1-on-1 opportunity with senior goalkeeper Eva Berkhout (Amersfoort, Utrecht, Netherlands), sending a backhand shot from the top of the circle into the bottom of the cage.
 
Freshman Berbel Rozema (Rotterdam, Netherlands) led the River Hawks with three shots on goal in the outing, while Irons, Knook and Kroeze each added two.
 
Sunday's contest marked the second meeting ever between UMass Lowell and Syracuse, but the first at the Division I level. The Orange owns a 2-0 edge in the all-time series. The River Hawks are now set to head out on a three-game road swing beginning at No. 11 Virginia on Friday, September 6 at 3 p.m.