PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The UMass Lowell field hockey team (4-5) faced a 4-0 setback at Ivy League foe Brown (4-3) on Sunday in its lone game of the week.
"It was a tough Sunday for the River Hawks," said Head Coach
Shannon LeBlanc. "Some uncharacteristic play from our side and a great offensive effort on Brown's side. We will look forward to a great week of practice to be ready for our conference opener."
Four River Hawks registered shots in the contests, including junior
Florine Gerrits (Amstelveen, Netherlands) and sophomore
Karlijn Kerkhof (Rotterdam, Netherlands), who each put a chance on target. In the cage, freshman keeper
Veerle Mous (Breda, Netherlands) totaled 10 saves, as well.
The home side was able to jump in front in just the sixth minute on a corner chance, when Juliette Meijaard set up near the stroke line and was able to tip a hard ball from Kate Siedem high into the net to make it 1-0.
Mous warded off more attempts from the Bears in the first quarter with three fantastic saves. However, Brown would continue to pressure into the second quarter and add back-to-back goals in the first minute. Kiersten Smith first finished a rebound off the post before getting the ball back in the circle on the next possession and pushing a pass around Mous to a waiting Sadie Schultz for the one-timer to stretch the difference to 3-0.
Sophomore
Lindsey McGurl (Holden, Mass.) tallied the River Hawks' first shot in the 19th minute. UMass Lowell then earned a corner in the 24th minute, but attempts from freshman
Rena Pistilli (Lambaré, Paraguay) and Kerkhof were thwarted, sending the team into the break down, 3-0.
Coming out of halftime, the River Hawk defense extinguished four early corners for the Bears. Then late in the third, Mous made back-to-back stops to keep her team within three.
Mous added two more saves to start the fourth before Gerrits put a ball on cage on the opposite end, but it was also turned away in the 49
th minute. The home team's final goal once again came off the stick of Smith, this time in the last minute, bouncing over a diving Mous to seal the 4-0 outcome.
The River Hawks continue their three-game road swing when they open America East Conference action at Bryant on Friday, October 3 at 3 p.m.
