LOWELL, Mass. – Although junior Lucas Condotta (Georgetown, Ontario) cut the difference in half with a goal in the third period, the No. 16 UMass Lowell hockey team (3-3-0) faced a 2-1 setback against No. 10 Massachusetts (11-5-3) on Saturday evening.
 
"I'll start by congratulating our opponent," said Head Coach Norm Bazin. "You never like to give up points at home, but they were the better team this weekend. I thought today we played a lot better. I liked our response in the third period. I thought we started to get our legs under us again, but we've got a ways to go conditioning-wise, so we'll work on that this week."
 
Sophomore Zach Kaiser (Orangeville, Ontario) and junior Chase Blackmun (Hudson, Wis.) each tallied an assist in the outing. Junior Seth Barton (Kelowna, B.C.) paced the River Hawks with eight shots, including three on goal.
 
Junior Reid Stefanson (Winnipeg, Manitoba) gave the River Hawks their first big opportunity of the night early on, firing a blistering slap shot on target, but the Minutemen's Filip Lindberg was able to make the stop to keep the game scoreless through the first period.
 
However, less than a minute into the second period, the Minutemen broke open the scoring, as Garrett Wait got a piece of a pass from Zac Jones to redirect the puck on target. The visitors then extended their margin to 2-0 halfway through the second when George Mika got in front of the pack, skating up ice and dishing to Anthony Del Gaizo, before finishing the pass back.
 
The River Hawks battled back in the third thanks to a strong shot by Condotta that found its way through traffic and into the net, making it just a one-goal game at 4:04 of the final frame. The home team put a total of 10 shots on goal in that period, compared to just five for the Minutemen, but Massachusetts would hold on for the 2-1 decision.
 
The River Hawks' next opponent has yet to be determined and will be announced by Hockey East in the coming days.