LOWELL, Mass. – Sophomore Karlijn Kerkhof (Rotterdam, Netherlands) tallied a late goal, as the UMass Lowell field hockey team (7-7) faced a 5-1 setback against No. 4 Harvard (13-0) on Sunday afternoon at Wicked Blue Field.
 
"We played a new formation today that we introduced yesterday and I was really happy with the discipline of our defensive style and our pressing," said Head Coach Shannon LeBlanc. "I thought we limited their opportunities, especially in the first half, making it really hard and frustrating for them to find lines, so really happy with how we applied something that we quickly implemented yesterday."
 
Kerkhof led the way with five shots on the day. Sophomore Lindsey McGurl (Holden, Mass.) and freshman Alexa Guarneri (Hockessin, Del.) each added one chance, as well. In the cage, freshman goalkeeper Veerle Mous (Breda, Netherlands) registered 11 saves.
 
The defense controlled the opening minutes of the contest with neither side able to get an offensive edge. The Crimson earned the first corner of the afternoon, but Mous batted a hard shot away from the cage. The River Hawks then fended off three more shots in the period to keep the game scoreless through one.
 
In the 16^th minute, however, Harvard's Sage Piekarski dribbled to the endline before slipping a pass by Mous to the front of the cage for Martha le Huray to finish. Just over a minute later, the River Hawks earned their first corner, although Kerkhof's slap shot was kicked away.
 
The UMass Lowell defense continued to stand tough, extinguishing a corner in the 23^rd minute thanks to two more Mous stops and a defensive save by freshman Rena Pistilli (Lambaré, Paraguay). The Crimson were awarded a penalty stroke in the 28^th minute when Tilly Butterworth attempted to find the top corner, but Mous lunged to knock it away and keep her team within one at the break.
 
Just over three minutes into the third quarter, Harvard was able to stretch its lead to 2-0, as Lara Beekhuis received the ball near midfield and carried it just inside the circle before firing on target.
 
Harvard would go on to score three goals during a 10-minute stretch between the end of the third quarter and beginning of the fourth. In the 43^rd minute, Butterworth earned another penalty stroke chance, this time converting. Four minutes later, Kate Oliver finished a rebound in front of the cage on a corner and in the 52nd minute, Sage Piekarski redirected a reverse-stick hit from Lara Beekhuis to make it 5-0.
 
The River Hawks did not back down, gaining momentum in their offensive end. The home side first earned a trio of corners in the 53^rd minute and kept the pressure on when Kerkhof rang the post in the 55^th minute. In the 57^th minute, freshman Haley Wernig (Franklin, Mass.) took control away from a defender and dished a short pass to Kerkhof, who sped into the circle and unleashed a reverse-stick laser that sailed past the opposing keeper to cut the final difference to 5-1.
 
The River Hawks head to Orono next to visit America East foe Maine on Friday, October 24. That contest is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.