LOWELL, Mass. – Sophomore Johnny Soi (Kerhonkson, N.Y.) scored a team-high three goals, as the UMass Lowell men's lacrosse team (4-9, 1-5 AE) fell to the Bryant Bulldogs (9-4, 5-1 AE), 17-12, in the season finale on Saturday afternoon.

"The guys played their tails off today," said Head Coach Drew Kelleher. "Our five seniors, who we're so grateful for, got us ready to go. I'm really proud to fight until the very end against a really good Bryant team."

Soi, who added an assist and a ground ball, was one of three River Hawks to record a four-point day. Tied with him, graduate student Garrett Murphy (Billerica, Mass.) and freshman Danny Burke (Eden Prairie, Minn.) each tallied two goals and two assists. Senior Riley Lawhorn (Amherst, N.H.) added a goal and two assists, while sophomore Colby Frigon (Providence, R.I.) tallied two goals. Rounding out the goal scorers, freshmen Alex Lafreniere (Chelmsford, Mass.) and Griffin Sumwalt (Aquebogue, N.Y.) each chipped in a goal. In net, freshman AJ True (Manchester, N.H.) and sophomore Scott Kosakowski (Westport, Ct.) split time, with True making nine saves and Kosakowski stopping five shots.

Although Bryant registered the first goal of the game under two minutes in, the River Hawks came out hot, allowing only the one goal for well over ten minutes. Meanwhile, the offense went to work, scoring four goals in a four-minute period, kickstarted by a snipe from deep by Frigon. Trailing 4-1 with four minutes remaining in the first, the Bulldogs went to work, scoring three unanswered in a two-minute span, tying the game up at 4-4 heading into the second.

Picking up where they left off, the visitors struck twice before the 12-minute mark to retake the lead, 6-4, early in the quarter. The River Hawks responded quick though, as Soi ripped a shot into the back of the net at 11:25 to make it a one-goal difference. Despite a goal by Bryant a minute later to regain the multi-goal cushion, UMass Lowell continued to battle, as Lawhorn, Sumwalt, and Soi all fired one past the keeper, with only one goal by the visitors in between, to even the score at 8-8 with 5:48 remaining in the half. In the final minutes of the period, the Bulldogs added three to take an 11-8 lead into the break.

Coming out of halftime, Bryant tallied two goals in the first five minutes to stretch the advantage to five. The River Hawks refused to back down, as Burke dished a pass out to Frigon, who ripped another shot from deep into the back of the net, pull his team back within four, 13-9, with 8:15 on the clock. Meanwhile, the defense locked down, holding the opposition scoreless for seven minutes, but as the quarter was close to coming to an end, Byrant added two more to take a 15-9 lead into the final period.

In the fourth, after two goals by the visitors gave them a 17-9 advantage, their largest of the afternoon, the River Hawks attempted to make a comeback, as Burke scored twice and Murphy added one, but there was not enough time left, sealing the 17-12 decision.