AMHERST, Mass. – Junior Chloe Bowers (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) scored twice, as the UMass Lowell women's lacrosse team (2-3) dropped a midweek battle at the Massachusetts Minutewomen (4-1), 12-6, on Wednesday afternoon.

"It was a tale of two halves," said Head Coach Lisa Miller. "We played very well as a team in the first half, were efficient on offense, and played lights out defensively. Unfortuantely, struggles in the clearing game led to too many back to back defendive possessions to maintain momentum on attack and stay fresh on defense."

Bowers, who was one of five goal scorers for the River Hawks, also contributed with a ground ball and a caused turnover. Junior Bronwyn Hilbert (Lancaster, Pa.) and redshirt freshman Chiara Pompei (Catonsville, Md.) each added a goal and an assist, while seniors Grace Lydon (Rowley, Mass.) and Macy Shultz (Adams, N.Y.) both tallied a goal. Rounding out point scorers, freshman Brienne Brezynskie (Elmira, Ontario) recorded an assist. In net, junior Alexa Kuhn (Rocky Point, N.Y.) made 11 saves in 60 minutes of action, matching her season high.

The River Hawks started the game hot, scoring only 1:29 into the contest when Brezynskie dished out a pass to Pompei, who launched a shot over the goalkeepers' shoulder, giving UMass Lowell a 1-0 lead. The Minutewomen responded with haste, though, scoring under a minute later before adding a second goal at 8:04, to take a one-goal lead. The visitors locked down on defense, not allowing another goal for the remainder of the quarter, while Hilbert added a goal off an assist from Pompei, evening the score at 2-2 after one.

In the second quarter, both teams put a high priority on defense, as Massachusetts scored the lone goal in the first half of the period. After the Minutewomen added another score with just over seven minutes to play to extend the lead to two, the River Hawks' offense stormed to life, as Bowers scored a minute later, quickly followed by a free position goal from Lydon, once again knotting up the score, this time at 4-4. With time winding down on the half, UMass Lowell continued to push the pace, setting Shultz's first goal of the afternoon, assisted by Hilbert, with 1:19 on the clock, giving her squad a 5-4 lead heading into the break.

Coming out of the break, the hosts hit their stride, scoring three-straight goals to take their largest lead of the day, 7-5. UMass Lowell refused to be denied, as Bowers capitalized on a free position shot with 39 seconds remaining in the third, cutting the deficit to one with 15 minutes to play.

In the fourth, the River Hawks looked to make a comeback, but the Minutewomen added five straight, sealing the 12-6 final score.

Next up, the River Hawks return home to host the Siena Saints this Saturday, February 28, at Cushing Field. The opening draw is scheduled for 1 p.m.