ORONO, Maine – Graduate student Taylor Burgess (Mendon, Mass.) made eight saves between the posts, as No. 4 UMass Lowell (6-10-3, 4-3-1 AE) fell, 2-0, to No. 1 Maine (12-1-3, 7-0-1 AE) in the America East Semifinals at Mahaney Diamond on Thursday evening.  

"We knew it would be challenging playing against the number one seed here today, and Maine rightfully proved that they deserved their seeding, said Head Coach Mira Novak. "We also knew it would be really hard for us to create chances against their defense. Unfortunately, after conceding very early on, it was an uphill battle. We tried to change things up in the second half, but we were not able to generate enough to come back. Congrats to Maine for a great season. They deserve to be in the championship game. Thank you to all our seniors and graduate students for all they've done for the program and for moving it forward. We'll miss them and will keep fighting to make them proud," added Novak.

The Black Bears outshot the River Hawks, 16-5, as senior Laura Cetina (A Coruña, Galicia, Spain) led the team with three attempts.  

The contest was rapidly underway, as Maine's leading scorer Abby Kraemer would do it again, securing the early lead in the fifth minute with a give-and-go set from Emma Schneider and Jordane Pinette.   

In the 11th minute, Burgess made a significant save, punching the ball out of bounds and keeping the Black Bears from another goal. 

Cetina had back-to-back shots, both off target but two great opportunities for the River Hawks in the 17th and 22nd minutes, respectively.   Concluding the first half, the score remained 1-0 with Maine in the lead. 

UMass Lowell would match Maine's pace of play at the beginning of the second half, going shot-for-shot for several minutes. 

The first two River Hawk shots belonged to graduate student Calliste Brookshire (Kingston, Mass.) having a hard strike right at the keeper in the 51st minute, with Cetina following in the 53rd minute with a shot high of the net.  

Abbey Thornton of Maine was able to sneak in her squad's second goal of the contest past a diving Burgess in the 69th minute with assists credited to Gillian Rovers and Laura Kirkby. 

Following this goal, Burgess made an outstanding save in the 72nd minute, absorbing a well-kicked shot, quickly smothering the ball.  

Up next, senior Emma Mitchell (West Orange, N.J.) would have the best chance of the game for the River Hawks, as she fired a shot on goal, hitting the crossbar at the 88th-minute mark continuing to pressure the Black Bears.  

UMass Lowell grinded until the very end, but could not find the back of the net, resulting in a 2-0 loss.  

The River Hawks concluded their season this evening, creating an impressive run in the America East, coming back from an 0-4 conference drought at the beginning of the season, to make their seventh postseason appearance in a row.