LOWELL, Mass. – Backed by two freshman goal scorers, Calliste Brookshire (Kingston, Mass.) and Gianna DeRose (Brewster, N.Y.), the UMass Lowell women's soccer team defeated the University of New Hampshire Wildcats, 2-0, on Sunday afternoon in the start of conference action.
 
The River Hawks, playing their third home game of the season, upped their record to 2-1-1 after posting their second straight shutout. New Hampshire suffered its first loss of the season and falls to 4-1-0.
 
"It was a fantastic win against a conference opponent," commented head coach Mira Novak. "I'm very happy with another shutout, that's two games in a row where we haven't conceded any goals. The freshman class really showed how deep we can play today, our attacking midfielders played a tough 45 minutes, showing what a high-level of play we can achieve."
 
Brookshire tallied her first point as a River Hawk, giving UMass Lowell a 1-0 lead in the 13th minute when she dogged the New Hampshire defense and sent a shot past the fingertips of Wildcat keeper, Cat Sheppard. Sophomore Anna Edson (Beverly, Mass.) was credited with her first career assist, sending the ball to Brookshire from center field.
 
At the half, the River Hawks lead with eight shots while the Wildcats recorded six.
 
DeRose saw her first career tally as well, upping the advantage to 2-0 with 6:26 remaining in regulation. Junior Kristina Bartsch (Pulheim, Germany) sent a free kick that ricocheted off the top bar and into the doorstep of DeRose.
 
Led by sophomore goalkeeper Taylor Burgess (Mendon, Mass.), the UMass Lowell defense held the Wildcats to a season-low 10 shots. Burgess secures back-to-back clean sheets after making a career-high five saves.
 
The River Hawks will continue their home stand next Sunday when the welcome Maine for a 4 p.m. kickoff at Cushing Field.