River Hawks Battle to 2-2 Draw Against Hartford

Thursday, October 14

Lowell, Mass.

7PM

University of Massachusetts Lowell

7-4-2, 4-1-1

Hartford

7-3-3, 2-2-2

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Hartford	1	1	0	0	2
UMass Lowell	1	1	0	0	2

River Hawks Battle to 2-2 Draw Against Hartford

10/14/2021 10:32:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score Highlights Postgame

LOWELL, Mass. – In a highly-contested conference game, the UMass Lowell women's soccer team (7-4-2, 4-1-1 America East) tallied two goals on 18 shots but finished locked in a 2-2 draw after double overtime Thursday night against Hartford (7-3-3, 2-2-2 (AE).

Up against an aggressive Hawks defense, freshman Ioanna Papatheodorou (Nea Erithraia, Greece) led the team with three shots and one goal off a penalty kick. Senior Dunja Mostarac (Belgrade, Serbia) tallied two shots of her own, including the game-tying goal that would send the teams to overtime.

"It's as good as it gets in this league, two teams facing off each other. It was a great game to watch as a fan," said Head Coach Mira Novak following the match.

The River Hawk defense came out firing on all cylinders to start the game, recording multiple blocks to deny Hartford's relentless attackers. Commanding the back line, freshmanLisa Sjögren (Skellefteå, Sweden) recorded three saves in the first 20 minutes alone to help keep the Hawks at bay.

Hartford's pressure eventually gave way to the first goal of the match, as Chloe Layne sent one past Sjögren to give the visiting Hawks the 1-0 lead.

The advantage was short-lived for Hartford, however, as the River Hawks found themselves with a critical opportunity to score. Given a penalty kick, Papatheodorou drilled the ball into the upper righthand corner of the net in the 39th minute to knot the game up at one apiece.

The River Hawks defense continued to stand strong through the remainder of the half, as their bend-but-don't-break defense kept the game tied at one going into halftime.

Coming out of the locker room, the River Hawks looked for a spark on offense to set the pace of play. Unfortunately, Hartford got the upper hand in the 69th minute off a header from Kelly Severini gave the Hawks a 2-1 advantage.

The River Hawks wouldn't fold, however, immediately striking back less than two minutes later. Off an input from sophomore Calliste Brookshire (Kingston, Mass.), Mostarac was able to sneak a well-placed header past Hartford's goalie with less than 20 minutes left in regulation to keep the River Hawks in the match and send the teams to overtime.

"When things aren't going our way, we have to persevere and battle back. I'm super proud of the team and how they responded to the challenges," said Novak about the strike.

Despite a pair of strong chances from sophomore Rakel Stefansdottir (Hauganes, Iceland) and junior Emily Nelson (Peabody, Mass.), neither team was able to break through, ending the game in a 2-2 draw.

Next up, UMass Lowell looks to add another tally to the win column on Sunday, Oct. 17, as they travel to Vermont to take on the Catamounts. Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m.