LOWELL, Mass. – Coming off a thrilling, shootout victory on Saturday night, the No. 6 UMass Lowell men's soccer team (7-6-4) looks for its first America East Championship appearance since 2017, as the River Hawks visit the No. 2 Bryant Bulldogs (15-1-2) in the America East Semifinals on Wednesday, November 12. Opening kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Beirne Stadium.

LAST TIME OUT
The River Hawks enter Wednesday coming off an electric shootout victory over No. 6 UAlbany in the America East Quarterfinals on Saturday night. Tied 3-3 through two overtimes, the teams began a shootout, with UMass Lowell converting each of its first four attempts with redshirt-freshman Aamir Ketbache (Frankfurt am Main, Germany), senior Oliver Holmstrom (Gävle, Sweden), senior Oscar Perez (Sagunto, Spain), and junior Linus Musielak (Dortmund, Germany) all scoring for the River Hawks. On the defensive end, graduate student Jorge Ortega (Tijuana, B.C.) made a save on the Great Dane's third attempt, but a save in the fifth round by the hosts evened the shootout to 4-4, sending it to a sixth round. In the final round, junior Alex Champagne (Pembroke Pines, Fl.) buried his attempt, setting up Ortega, who made a remarkable kick save to clinch the victory for his squad. Leading the way for the River Hawks on offense were Perez, Champagne, and Ortega, who each scored a goal to help send the game to overtime. Also joining the point column, Musielak and graduate student Shunnosuke Nakajima (Yokohama, Japan) each added an assist on Champagne's goal. In net, Ortega made eight saves alongside his goal in 110 minutes of action.

LEADING THE FLOCK
Through the first round of the playoffs, Musielak and redshirt sophomore Justin Pham (Liverpool, N.Y.) lead the team with six points off two goals and two assists each. Behind them, Perez and Champagne each total four points off two goals, while senior Junyoung Hwang (Gimpo, South Korea), sophomore Henry Wohlt (Milwaukee, Wis.), junior Ethan Agyare-Danso (Etobicoke, Canada), Holmstrom, sophomore Matteo Costa (Frankfurt am Main, Germany) and junior Ethan Young (Kansas City, Mo.) each tally a goal and an assist. Nakajima paces the squad with three assists, while sophomore Cristiano Da Silva (Port Coquitlam, British Columbia) is tied with Pham and Musielak for second on the squad with two. Senior Iñaki Esnaola (Junin, Argentina) and Nakajima represent the two River Hawks to start in 16 of the team's 17 games. In net, the River Hawks have split time between two goalies, with freshman Alvaro Medrano (Guatemala City, Guatemala) making 37 saves and allowing 10 goals in seven starts, while graduate student Jorge Ortega (Tijuana, B.C., Mexico) has made 21 saves and allowed 13 goals in ten starts, including posting a stretch of three straight shutouts.

POSTSEASON BOUND
For the first time under Head Coach Kyle Zenoni, the River Hawks clinched a playoff berth ahead of the regular season finale. In his first playoff game as Head Coach, Zenoni's squad fought until the final buzzer against #3 UAlbany, as the River Hawks scored the game-tying goal with under a minute to play, sending the match to overtime, where they would eventually come out on top, 5-4, in a shootout. If UMass Lowell is to take down #2 Bryant, they would advance to the America East Championship for the first time in eight years, where they would take on the winner of #3 New Hampshire and #1 Vermont.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH
After an unbelievable performance, goalkeeper Jorge Ortega was named the America East Player of the Match following the conclusion of the team's quarterfinals matchup. Against the Great Danes, the graduate student came out of the net to score the game-tying goal with under a minute to play, saving the season for the River Hawks. Alongside the remarkable goal, he also posted a career-high eight saves, including three in overtime, while making two massive stops in the shootout to advance his team to the America East Semifinals.

END OF YEAR AWARDS
On Tuesday afternoon, the America East announced the 2025 All-Conference selections. Representing the River Hawks, redshirt freshman Aamir Ketbache (Frankfurt am Main, Germany) was named to the conference's All-Rookie team, while Musielak was tabbed to the America East All-Academic Team.

SHUTOUT STREAK
Ahead of the season, Coach Zenoni emphasized the need for good defensive play to find success in conference play. So far, so good, as the River Hawks posted clean sheets in three straight conference matches, the longest shutout streak by the team since recording five straight during the 2019 season, and the longest streak in conference play since posting three straight to close out the 2017 season.

RAPID FIRE RIVER HAWKS
So far this season, the River Hawks have excelled at jumping in front early of the opposition, scoring the first goal of the game in all eight of their wins. Even more impressive, in three of those wins, they've found the back of the net in less than five minutes. Most recently, Hwang opened the scoring with 4:58 on the clock against CCSU, and although Pham scored the game-winner against Merrimack just over three minutes in, his earliest goal of the year came in the season opener when he struck against Saint Peter's with 1:21 on the clock.

HOT HAND IN NET
In their first years at UMass Lowell, the River Hawks' goalkeeping duo has made their names known. Medrano, who has earned the start in seven of the team's 16 games, has compiled a 4-2-1 record while posting a .787 save percentage. Ortega, meanwhile, has earned the start in the team's last seven games, posting three clean sheets to help the team earn seven points in conference play as well as their win in the America East Quarterfinals. On the season, the graduate student has allowed 13 goals in ten games for a 1.34 goals against average.

WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS
In week eight, after playing the entire game and serving as a key member of the defense that held #2 Vermont scoreless at home for the first time since 2022, Nakajima was tabbed the America East Defensive Player of the Week. The award marks the fourth of the year for the River Hawks, as only a week prior, after making his fourth career start and playing all 90 minutes while helping hold Binghamton scoreless and without a shot on target, Ketbache was named the America East Defensive Player of the Week. Earlier in the season, Medrano was named both the America East Defensive Player and Rookie of the Week in week two after making 11 saves without allowing a goal in his first two collegiate appearances. Not only did the two awards mark the first for UMass Lowell on the season, but it is the first time a River Hawk has earned both awards in the same week.

FRESH FACES 
Four of the newest River Hawks have made at least 15 appearances so far this season, with three earning at least 10 starts. Ten of the team's 18 goals have come off the foot of a newcomer, while five newcomers have accumulated at least 775 minutes of playtime.

CONFERENCE RANKINGS
Entering Tuesday morning, the America East is ranked as one of the best conferences in the nation, as it is the only conference with two teams in the top five of the RPI.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
After finishing with a 6-1 record in America East play, Bryant earned the No. 2 seed in the America East tournament as well as a bye in the first round. Jaime Amaro paces the Bulldogs' offense, totaling 10 goals and seven assists for 27 points, all ranking first in the conference. Behind him, Paco Fernandez sits second with 14 points, while two other Bulldogs finished the regular season with double-digit scoring. In net, Enzo Carvalho played the majority of games for Bryant, allowing seven goals while making 34 saves in 14 starts, good for a .892 save percentage.

MATCHUP HISTORY
UMass Lowell and Bryant have faced off eight times, with the Bulldogs owning a 5-2-1 advantage all-time. Earlier this season, the two sides battled at Beirne Stadium to open conference play, with Bryant earning a 3-0 victory in the match.