LOWELL, Mass. – Senior Hannah Keefe (Westford, Mass.) slotted home the golden goal in the 74^th minute to propel the UMass Lowell field hockey team (5-1) to a double-overtime victory against UC Davis (4-4) in the 2021 America East opener on Friday.
 
Despite an Aggie goal in the first minute, the teams were knotted up for more than 60 minutes of play before Keefe found her way to the near post in time to get a stick on a ball from sophomore Alissia de Vries (The Hague, Netherlands) for the game-winner.
 
"We didn't get off to the best start in the first 30 seconds or so, however we had a lot of game left to earn the equalizer, so we were happy to do that," said Head Coach Shannon LeBlanc. "I think we showed a lot of resilience and composure in making sure we didn't let the game slip away. The whole overtime, we dominated possession and I was really happy about that. We learned a lot about our team, and even when we were tired, showed our attention to detail and basics."
 
Junior Berbel Rozema (Rooterdam, Netherlands) accounted for the River Hawks' first goal of the afternoon. Meanwhile, sophomore goalkeeper Eleonore Boekhorst (Bilthoven, Netherlands) matched a season-high with five saves. As a team, the River Hawks outshot UC Davis, 19-11, although the Aggies led in corner chances, 7-5.
 
The visitors opened the scoring less than 30 seconds into the contest when Shea Gavin stole the ball inside the circle and put back an off-balance slap shot high into the net.
 
In the eighth minute, Rozema took an open look from top of circle, although the Aggies' Kallie Wagnon got a boot on it. The home team was able to erase the difference just before the first period expired, though, as junior Kate Miller (Cherry Hill, N.J.) dribbled along the end line and sent a pass across the cage for the one-time on target by Rozema.
 
The Aggies opened the second half with a breakaway by Skylar Richards, but her backhanded dish was stopped by Boekhorst. Both sides would then battle for the advantage in the fourth with UMass Lowell taking a slight, 5-4 edge in shots. UC Davis threatened with a corner in the last five minutes of regulation, but the shot trickled wide to send the game into overtime.
 
With just over three minutes left in the first overtime, seniors Grace Davis (Waterloo, Ontario) and Jenna Berger (Waterloo, Ontario) charged through the circle with numbers, but Wagnon stepped out of the cage to kick the ball free and out of play, sending the teams to the second and final overtime.
 
The River Hawks will continue conference play this weekend when they host California on Sunday, September 26 at 12 p.m.