LOWELL, Mass. – The UMass Lowell ice hockey team (4-5-0, 2-3-0 Hockey East) dropped a 2-0 decision to New Hampshire (4-4-0, 2-2-0 Hockey East) on Friday night at the Tsongas Center.

Freshman Austin Elliott (Strathmore, Alberta) got the nod for the River Hawks in net, making 25 saves and allowing one goal.

"It wasn't the result we were looking for, obviously," said Head Coach Norm Bazin. "You go into a game after a pretty nice effort last Saturday and you don't have the same intensity. I think you win as a team and lose as a team, and today, we lost as a team."

The River Hawks started out hot, peppering shots on New Hampshire goaltender Kyle Chauvette to begin the period. They went on the power play at the 3:09 mark, creating multiple scoring chances, but could not cash in. Freshman Dalyn Wakely (Port Hope, Ontario) had a great chance at the 8:06 mark in front of the net off a pass from sophomore Libor Nemec (Bratislava, Slovakia), but it was just saved. UMass Lowell returned to the power play at the 13:23 mark, going scoreless, before Elliott came up with crucial saves on the other end to keep the score at zeroes heading into the first intermission.    

The squad continued to apply the pressure in the second period, despite a New Hampshire goal at the 12:23 mark. With two man-advantage opportunities, the River Hawks controlled the puck in the offensive zone for much of the period. Freshman Cole Lonsdale (Mississauga, Ontario) picked up a quality look at the end of the period, and the River Hawks won the period's shots on goal battle, 10-8, but both teams entered the locker room with a 1-0 score.

In the third, the River Hawks showed their drive, fighting to create scoring chances, and killing off a New Hampshire power play towards the middle of the period. Senior TJ Schweighardt (Manahawkin, N.J.) had a great one-timer at 13:16 that was just saved, just after another Lonsdale shot on goal in front of the net. At 17:50, New Hampshire scored an empty net goal while shorthanded, and the River Hawks followed it up with a handful of chances, including a goal that was overturned, but the score remained when the clock struck zero.

Next, the River Hawks head to New Hampshire for game two of the series, scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at the Whittemore Center.