BURLINGTON, VT. – Junior Macy Shultz (Adams, N.Y.) tallied three goals, including the game-winner with two seconds remaining, as the UMass Lowell women's lacrosse team (8-2, 2-0 AE) completed an incredible fourth-quarter comeback to take down the Vermont Catamounts (4-6, 0-2 AE), 14-13, on Saturday afternoon.
 
"I'm proud of the way we competed today," said Head Coach Lisa Miller. "We showed resilience several times throughout the game fought our way to a win. A team effort."
 
Trailing by one with five minutes remaining, the River Hawks' offense took over, as junior Audra Hansen (Stamford, Ct.) tied the game at 12-12 with 3:43 to play. Just over a minute later, the junior found the back of the net again, this time on a free position shot, to put her squad ahead by one in the final minutes. After a Vermont goal evened the score again with 1:08 to play, junior Rachel Stax (Milton, Ga.) won the most important draw control of the game, giving her team the ball and the ability to take the final shot. With the final seconds taking down, Hansen found Shultz in front of the net, and after catching the pass from her classmate, Shultz ripped a shot past the keeper with two seconds remaining, putting the River Hawks on top for good, 14-13.
 
Shultz, who finished the day with three goals and an assist, was one of six River Hawks to record at least a point. Hansen had a career day, setting a new personal best with six points, including tying her career-high with four goals. Right behind her, senior Jade Catlin (Middletown, Md.) added four goals, while sophomore Jillian Goldie (Owen Sound, Ontario) chipped in with two goals and an assist. Rounding out the scoring, junior Grace Lydon (Rowley, Mass.) tallied a goal and an assist, and freshman Georgia Ruscitti (Toronto, Ontario) contributed an assist. Stax finished the day with nine draw controls, and in net sophomore Alexa Kuhn (Rocky Point, N.Y.) made eight saves in the victory.
 
Vermont opened the game strong on the offensive end, scoring once in the first minute before adding another at the 8:48 mark to take an early 2-0 lead. The River Hawks, however, locked down defensively, not allowing another goal until the final seconds of the quarter. Meanwhile, UMass Lowell's offense went to work, as Goldie and Lydon each tallied woman-up goals to even the score at 2-2. Moments later, Catlin and Hansen each struck to put the squad up two, but a goal with 15 seconds remaining by the Catamounts cut the deficit to 4-3 heading into the second.
 
In the second quarter, Vermont struck first, scoring at 13:10 to knot up the score at 4-4. UMass Lowell stayed strong on the defensive end, holding the Catamounts scoreless until 5:30, when they used a woman-up opportunity to take the lead, 5-4. The River Hawks refused to let them pull away any further, though, using a free-position goal by Catlin less than a minute later to once again even the score. Although Vermont added one at 3:44, Goldie and Shultz found the back of the net less than 30 seconds apart to retake the lead before a goal by the hosts with just over a minute remaining sent the game into halftime tied at 7-7.
 
Coming out of the break, the River Hawks picked up where they left off, using a goal by Hansen with 11:50 on the clock to retake the lead, 8-7. Vermont responded with a vengeance, going on a 4-0 scoring stretch to take the largest lead of the day, 11-8. The visitors refused to back down, scoring with 2:30 remaining off the stick of Catlin to make it a two-goal deficit, 11-9, heading into the final period.
 
Looking to mount a comeback, the River Hawks wasted no time, as Catlin found the back of the net for the fourth time to pull her team back within one. Less than two minutes later, UMass Lowell struck again when Hansen dished a pass to Shultz, who snuck her shot past the keeper to make it an 11-11 game with just over ten minutes remaining. The two sides proceeded to lock down on defense, as neither side added a score for over five minutes, but the Catamounts finally struck with 5:10 to go, setting up the thrilling finish.
 
Next up, the River Hawks return home to host the UAlbany Great Danes on Saturday, March 29. The opening draw control is set for 5 p.m. at Cushing Field.