LOWELL, Mass. – The UMass Lowell men's soccer team (2-2-2, 0-0-0 AE) begin conference play as they take on the NJIT Highlanders (3-3-2, 0-0-0 AE) at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium on Saturday, September 23 at 7 p.m.
  
September 23 at NJIT (7:00 p.m.)
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LAST TIME OUT
The River Hawks enter Tuesday's match coming off a dominating 5-0 win over CCSU on Saturday night. Against the Blue Devils, senior Guillermo Francés Poquet (Enguera, Valencia) tallied his third and fourth goals of the season, while freshman Daniele Mastroianni (Montréal, Quebec) added his third goal of the year. Sophomores Iñaki Esnaola (Junin, Argentina) and Michael Oliveri Jr. (West Islip, N.Y.) joined in on the scoring with the first goals of their careers.
 
LEADING THE FLOCK
Francés Poquet currently leads the River Hawks with four goals and eight points on the season. Right behind him, Mastroianni totals three goals for six points, while sophomore Oliver Holmstrom (Gävle, Sweden) adds in two goals of his own. Leading the squad in assists are sophomore Calvin Scholten (Hengelo, Netherlands) and graduate student Javier Torres (Málaga, Spain) with two each. In net, junior Adam Henry (Fort Myers, Fl.) has made 11 saves in four appearances, good for a 1.25 goals against average.

FRESH FACES
Eleven of the newest members of the squad have made at least one appearance in the first six games, including four who have started in at least five matches. Of the newest River Hawks, Matroianni leads in scoring with six points, while Scholten adds two points, and junior Santiago Delfino (Cordoba, Argentina) adds a goal of his own.

CONFERENCE HONORS
Following his impressive performance against Northeastern, Mastroianni was named the America East Rookie of the Week on September 5. The award marked the first of the rookie's young career and the first for a River Hawk this season. 

SCOUTING THE HIGHLANDERS
The Highlanders welcome UMass Lowell to town following a 2-1 loss to Iona. Sophomore midfielder Hugo Tavares leads the NJIT offense with four goals and an assist for nine total points. Midfielder Maximus Barboto has had an impressive start to the season, totaling eight assists which is currently tied for first in the nation. In net, Samuel Reisgys has made seven starts, totaling 20 saves for a 1.31 goals against average in over 615 minutes of action. 

MATCHUP HISTORY
Saturday's match against NJIT will mark the fifth time the teams have faced off, with the Highlanders holding a 2-1-1 advantage. When the two squads faced off at Cushing Field during the 2022 season, both sides fought hard to a 0-0 draw.
 
A WIN WOULD 
A win against the Highlanders would be the second in the series for UMass Lowell. If the River Hawks claim victory in the match, they would move to an overall record of 3-2-2 and would start conference play 1-0-0 for the first time since 2019.