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Men's Soccer
Gawel UVM Header
2
Winner Vermont UVM (9-2-4, 4-1-1)
1
UMass Lowell UML (6-4-5, 1-3-2)
Winner
Vermont UVM
(9-2-4, 4-1-1)
2
Final
1
UMass Lowell UML
(6-4-5, 1-3-2)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Vermont UVM 1 1 2
UMass Lowell UML 0 1 1

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at New Hampshire

11/5/2024 | 6PM

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Nov. 05 (Tue) / 6PM
at New Hampshire
History

Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

River Hawks Comeback Effort Falls Short in 2-1 Loss to No. 23 Vermont

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LOWELL, Mass. –  Senior Yanis Lakhlifi (La Crau, France) tallied his team-high fifth goal of the season, as the UMass Lowell men's soccer team (6-4-5, 1-3-2 AE) fell to the No. 23 Vermont Catamounts (9-2-4, 4-1-1 AE), 2-1, on Friday afternoon.

"I thought we played well," said head coach Kyle Zenoni. "I enjoyed watching us play. We gave up a tough one on their first chance of the first half off our mistake. The second goal we gave up, we slipped a little bit and it was a bit unfortunate. For the most part, we stuck to our game plan, we had some good opportunities to score, and we held them to few chances. They're a good team, well-coached, and they are good at what they do."

Lakhlifi, who has now scored in back-to-back games, led the squad with four shots and tied for a team-high with two shots on target. Behind him, senior Jonathan Ferriera (Ashland, Mass.) added three shots, including two on goal. Senior Santiago Delfino (Cordoba, Argentina) chipped in with three shots, while junior Iñaki Esnaola (Junin, Argentina) added two shots. In net, junior JR Gawel (Leonardtown, Md.) made a season-high seven saves.

The Catamounts came out firing, launching the first shot of the match on target less than four minutes into that match. Although the River Hawks responded almost immediately with a shot from senior Santiago Delfino (Cordoba, Argentina), Vermont continued to put on the pressure, adding five more shots but Gawel made a collection of saves, including a diving effort off a set piece, to keep the game scoreless in the 16th minute. With 20:04 on the clock though, Yaniv Bazini headed the ball into the back of the net to put the visitors in front 1-0.

Following the goal, UMass Lowell started to find its rhythm, with Lakhlifi and junior Iñaki Esnaola (Junin, Argentina) each tallying shots, but the Catamounts' keeper got in front of both to maintain the score. The hosts didn't slow down, outshooting the opposition 4-1 in the final ten minutes of the half, but Vermont held off the advances to keep it a 1-0 game heading to the break.

The River Hawks started the second half strong ripping off three more shots, including two off the foot of Ferreira. Although the opposition responded with three shots in five minutes, the UMass Lowell defense was up for the challenge, preventing the Catamounts from capitalizing to keep it a one-score game late in the second half. However, in the 78thminute, the visitors struck again, this time from a loose ball in front of the net, to extend their lead.

Looking to find their way back into the game, the River Hawks pushed the ball down the field multiple times but were unable to find the right opportunity. However, with 85:20 on the clock, Lakhlifi made his way into the box before getting fouled to set up a penalty kick. The senior drilled the shot into the top right corner of the net, cutting the deficit to 2-1. Minutes later, with less than 10 seconds on the clock, UMass Lowell found one last chance to knot up the score when senior Rui Aoki (Hyogo, Japan) laced a shot toward the left side of the net, but the Vermont keeper used a diving effort to reject the shot and seal the 2-1 decision.

Next up, the River Hawks finish off the regular season on Tuesday, November 5 when they travel to New Hampshire.
 
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Players Mentioned

Santiago Delfino

#4 Santiago Delfino

M
6' 0"
Junior
Yanis Lakhlifi

#14 Yanis Lakhlifi

F
6' 1"
Junior
Rui Aoki

#18 Rui Aoki

B
6' 2"
Junior
JR Gawel

#32 JR Gawel

GK
5' 11"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Santiago Delfino

#4 Santiago Delfino

6' 0"
Junior
M
Yanis Lakhlifi

#14 Yanis Lakhlifi

6' 1"
Junior
F
Rui Aoki

#18 Rui Aoki

6' 2"
Junior
B
JR Gawel

#32 JR Gawel

5' 11"
Junior
GK