River Hawks Battle Providence to 1-1 Draw in Season Opener

Wednesday, August 12

Providence, R.I.

6:30 PM

University of Massachusetts Lowell

0-0-1, 0-0-0

Providence

0-0-1, 0-0-0

Team	1	2	Final F
UMass Lowell	1	0	1
Providence	0	1	1

River Hawks Battle Providence to 1-1 Draw in Season Opener

8/12/2026 9:17:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Behind a program-record 14 saves from Rachel Welch (Franklin, Mass.) and an early goal from Nina Hertz-Saebbö (Gothenburg, Sweden), the UMass Lowell women's soccer team opened the season with a 1-1 draw at Providence.

"We started the game really well and executed the game plan," said Head Coach Mira Novak. "I felt like we almost scored the goal a little bit too early because we dropped off and defended a lot."

Just six minutes into the match, Hertz-Saebbö intercepted a Friars' pass inside the box and dropped it into the net to give the River Hawks an early 1-0 lead. Her second career goal gave UMass Lowell its quickest score to start a season since 2016. However, a Friars' goal with just over two minutes left ended the match in a draw.

With her 14 saves, Welch set a career high. She broke Julia Schneider's Division I program record of 13 saves, set against Vermont in 2016.

"Rachel was outstanding," Novak said. "She was able to handle the shots we saw in goal. I don't want to say that's an expectation at this point, but I think our whole goalkeeping group is solid. Today, Rachel was the one that stepped up and executed, and I'm proud of her."

After the early goal, UMass Lowell withstood multiple scoring threats from Providence in the first half. The Friars fired off 13 shots in the opening half, but the River Hawks held strong.

At 40 minutes, Welch made an acrobatic leaping save to keep the lead safe heading into the locker room. In the second half, Providence kept the pressure on.

The Friars pushed hard in the final 15 minutes. Jocy Koffi, who finished the match with 12 shots, had two consecutive shots saved by Welch in the late stages. Welch stopped another strong opportunity for Providence, saving two shots within 10 seconds to preserve the lead.

With under three minutes left, Koffi finally worked her way into the point column with a late equalizer.

The River Hawks move to 3-4-2 in season openers under Novak. Next up, UMass Lowell welcomes Fairfield to Cushing Field for the home opener on Sunday at 7 p.m. The River Hawks are set to hold Youth Night against the Stags. Admission is free to all matches courtesy of Eastern Salt and Mohoney Oil.