LOWELL, Mass. – Graduate student Hannah Keefe (Westford, Mass.) and junior Gianna Conte (Salisbury, Mass.) each registered a pair of goals, as the UMass Lowell field hockey team (4-2) defeated Merrimack (0-5) in the revival of the Valley Cup on Sunday afternoon.
 
With the victory, the River Hawks improve to 4-0 at home so far this season, marking the squad's best start at Wicked Blue during the Division I era.
 
"I thought our performance was solid in the second half," said Head Coach Shannon LeBlanc. "I don't think we played as disciplined and structured as we had hoped in the first half, but I like the adjustments we made, so we were happy with that. Getting in those role players that have been practicing really hard and making sure we're prepared for all our games was awesome today. I think they gave us some great minutes."
 
Five different River Hawks notched a point in the contest. Conte's goals were the first tallies of her career, while Keefe's scores match a personal best. Graduate student Jenna Berger added three points on the day, while freshman Isabelle Halters (Noordwijk, Netherlands) rounded out the goal scorers. On the defensive end, junior goalkeeper Eleonore Boekhorst (Bilthoven, Netherlands) made one stop to earn the decision.
 
The River Hawks wasted no time attacking, scoring on a direct corner less than two minutes into play thanks to a hard shot through the defense from the top of the circle by Halters. The home team would then add to its lead with back-to-back penalty stroke goals by Berger in the 14^th minute and Keefe in the 17^th to extend the difference to 3-0.
 
Merrimack responded with its lone goal on a corner in the 19^th minute when Anne-Sophie Hogenboom planted herself near the post in time to finish off a pass in from the top of the circle, cutting the difference to 3-1 at the break.
 
Halftime adjustments led to two more River Hawk goals in the first eight minutes of the second. Keefe first finished a rebound off the keeper's pads in the 36^th minute before Conte dribbled towards the wing and fired an uncontested slap into the back of the cage in the 38^th to make it 5-1 in favor of the home team.
 
Conte added the final insurance goal of the day in the 44^th minute, as she redirected a ball from Berger up high into the net, securing the 6-1 victory.
 
The River Hawks start America East play next weekend when they welcome Stanford to Wicked Blue for a 3 p.m. matchup on Friday, September 16.