LOWELL, Mass. – Sophomore Rachel Welch (Franklin, Mass.) recorded five saves in net and her second shutout of the season, as the UMass Lowell women's soccer team (2-3-2) earned a dominant 3-0 victory over Stonehill (0-5-2) on Thursday night at Cushing Field.
"We had a tough stretch of games behind us, so we wanted to continue on the rise here just looking to get better in terms of playing style, and placing players in different positions with others coming back," said Head Coach Mira Novak. "It was good from that perspective, and for us we wanted to make sure that we played at our best today. We aren't just trying to adjust to the opponent, but we try to impose ourselves on them, and put ourselves in a position to win the game. We did it early when we scored three minutes into the game which was a great start. It was a solid game and I was happy for the team today to get the win."
Senior Megan Banzi (Plymouth, Mass.) tallied her first goal of the season, while freshman Anneliese Collin (Portland, Me.) collected her second goal of the season. Freshman Nora Belin (Stockholm, Sweden) also scored, posting her first career goal. Sophomore Nuala Rodgers (Dedham, Mass.) recorded her second assist of the season, while senior Maija Hodson (Sault Saint Marie, Ontario) and senior Nadja Andersen (Nakskov, Denmark) added their first assists of the season.
UMass Lowell came out explosive in the opening minutes, as Rodgers handled the ball on the right side, sending it up to Andersen, who quicky crossed it to Banzi in front of the net, setting up the senior for an easy header, putting her squad in front 1-0 only four minutes in. The River Hawks followed up with excellent defense, holding the opposition scoreless for the next 20 minutes, highlighted by an excellent save by Welch in the 13th minute.
In the 26th minute, the hosts saw another opportunity to capitalize, and were sure to take advantage of it. In a one-on-one with her defender, Collin made a quick move before striking a shot to the back of the net, increasing the team's lead to 2-0. Minutes later, the River Hawks kept the pressure on the Skyhawks, as Belin fired off a chip shot that was denied, but Hodson instantly gathered the rebound, passing it back to Belin, who knocked in the team's third goal of the match. Both sides continued the back-and-forth battle in the final minutes of the half, with UMass Lowell keeping the three-goal advantage heading into the break.
Coming out of the break, Stonehill looked for an early opportunity at a goal, firing off a shot in the 51st minute. Welch was up to the challenge, though, making a huge save to keep the opposition from getting on the board. Shortly after, redshirt freshman Nina Hertz-Saebbö (Gothenburg, Sweden) looked to extend the lead, firing off a shot on target of her own in the 57th minute, but the visiting keeper was able to make the save.
In the final 30 minutes of the match, the Skyhawks looked for any opportunity to get on the board, outshooting the hosts 6-4. The River Hawks, however, held their ground, playing excellent defense down the stretch to keep the 3-0 lead and record their second clean sheet of the season.
The River Hawks are back on the road this Sunday, September 14, when they match up against New Haven at Kathy Zolad Stadium, in their final non-conference game of the season. The contest is set to start at 1:00 p.m. in West Haven, Conn.
