LOWELL, Mass. –  Senior Grace Lydon (Rowley, Mass.) totaled a game-high five points, as the UMass Lowell women's lacrosse team (5-8, 1-3 AE) earned a thrilling, 11-10 overtime victory over the UMBC Retrievers (6-6, 1-3 AE) on Saturday afternoon.

Tied at 10-10 with 60 minutes proving to not be enough, the game went to overtime, with the first team to score earning the win. In the extra period, UMass Lowell's defense held its ground, as freshman Brienne Brezynskie (Elmira, Ontario) caused a turnover only seconds in, while freshman Lauren Lorentzen (Carlsbad, Calif.) made a crucial save minutes later. Finally, with 1:04 on the clock, Brezynskie found redshirt freshman Chiara Pompei (Catonsville, Md.), who ripped a shot from 10 feet out past the keeper and into the back of the net, earning the team it's first conference victory of the season and first overtime win since 2017.

"It was back and forth the whole way," said Head Coach Lisa Miller. "It was close game. It's what conference games should be. I thought it was pretty chippy early on and the referees did a good job of controlling that. We made plays when we had to, and it was a good conference game."

Lydon, who finished with three goals and two assists, was one of seven River Hawks to record at least a point in the contest. Senior Macy Shultz (Adams, N.Y.) added three goals, junior Bronwyn Hilbert (Lancaster, Pa.) tallied two goals and an assist, while Brezynskie chipped in a goal and an assist. Pompei scored the game-winner in overtime, senior Kaitlynn Anderson (Winnipeg, Manitoba) added a goal, and sophomore Georgia Ruscitti (Toronto, Ontario) rounded things out with an assist. In net, Lorentzen made 11 saves in 64 minutes of action.

The Retrievers opened the scoring early, finding the back of the net less than a minute in to take a 1-0 lead. UMass Lowell locked in defensively, though, not allowing a goal for nearly five minutes of action. After a yellow card gave the visitors a woman-up opportunity, UMBC capitalized, scoring twice to make it a three-goal game. The River Hawks fired right back, using a woman-up situation of their own to score two goals, one by Shultz and one by Anderson, to cut the difference to 3-2 after one quarter.

In the second, UMass Lowell continued to excel defensively, not allowing the opposition to get back on the board for more than 12 minutes of the quarter, extending their scoring drought to nearly 22 minutes of game time. On offense, meanwhile, Lydon found her first scoring chance of the day, dashing past her defender before sneaking a shot past the keeper while being hit, evening the score at 3-3 with 8:41 on the clock. The Retrievers added two more of their own in the final minutes to take a 5-3 lead into the break.

Coming out of halftime, UMBC struck twice to own a 7-3 advantage with 11:19 on the clock. The River Hawks refused to back down, as Lydon capitalized on another woman-up opportunity, before Shultz and Hilbert each struck, cutting the difference to 7-6 with 4:02 on the clock. Despite the Retrievers adding another goal moments later, UMass Lowell's offense continued to cruise, as Hilbert and Shultz both struck in the final minutes, knotting the game up at 8-8 with one quarter to go.

Although UMBC scored the first goal of the fourth quarter with 9:12 on the clock, the hosts responded moments later when Brezynskie ripped a shot into the back of the net for her first goal of the day, once again evening the score at 9-9 with under five to play. Minutes later, with 1:29 to play, Lydon completed the hat trick, lacing a shot from deep into the bottom right corner of the net, giving her team their first lead of the day, 10-9. The Retrievers countered immediately, tying the game up with 38 seconds left and sending the game to overtime.

Next up, the River Hawks face a quick turnaround as they host the Dartmouth Big Green on Tuesday, April 14. Opening draw control is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Cushing Field in Lowell, Massachusetts.