Novak Earns 50th Career Win as River Hawks Down Stonehill, 1-0

Thursday, September 10

Easton, Mass.

6PM

University of Massachusetts Lowell

2-4-1, 0-0-0

Stonehill

0-4-4, 0-0-0

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

Novak Earns 50th Career Win as River Hawks Down Stonehill, 1-0

9/10/2026 8:25:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

EASTON, Mass. – Junior Mia Eva Girgis (Montreal, Quebec) boosted the UMass Lowell women's soccer team (2-4-1) past Stonehill (0-4-4) 1-0 with a goal right out of the gate in the second half. Head Coach Mira Novak earned his 50th career win in the contest, all of which have come with the River Hawks.

"I'm happy for the team to get a win," said Head Coach Mira Novak. "It was a little nervy at the end, but there was a good spell in the second half where you could see glimpses of how we want to play."

Right at the start of the second half, sophomore Kiera Fitzpatrick (Methuen, Mass.) made a slick pass to Girgis, who drilled the ball into the top left corner to open and close the scoring. It was Girgis' third career goal, and first since 2024.

Junior Rachel Welch (Franklin, Mass.) put on a show just a short drive from her hometown, making four total saves in the shutout effort. She made two diving saves early in the second half to guide UMass Lowell to its first shutout of the season.

"For us, the mentality today was to get a shutout," Novak said. "We wanted to lock it down and make sure we have confidence going into conference play."

After setting a season-high with five corners against Massachusetts last Sunday, the River Hawks surpassed that total with nine corner kicks. It was the most corners in a match for UMass Lowell since the team had 10 on September 14, 2025, at New Haven.

Neither team was able to put together much of a scoring threat together to start the match. Stonehill forced Welch to make a save at six minutes, and senior Luka Marceau (Newton, Mass.) logged UMass Lowell's first shot at seven minutes.

The River Hawks applied pressure late in the first half, earning corners at 32 minutes and 35 minutes. A strong run and pass from freshman Briana Thomas (Burlington, Mass.) with less than two minutes left in the half nearly led to the first goal of the match, but a cross trickled away.

While the match went to halftime scoreless, it didn't stay that way for long. Just 40 seconds into the second half, Girgis booted one into the top corner to give UMass Lowell a 1-0 lead off the assist from Fitzpatrick.

Although the Skyhawks came back with a strong shot attempt, Welch made a leaping save to preserve the lead. Just a few minutes later, she made another highlight-reel save to keep Stonehill scoreless.

The River Hawks continued the offensive pressure, trying to score again to ice the match. Junior Gaby Eckroth (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) and redshirt freshman Elsa Freeman (Portland, Maine) each forced the Skyhawks' keeper to make saves. Each finished with three total shots on the night.

Despite a late push from Stonehill, the River Hawks held strong and sealed the win. Up next, UMass Lowell welcomes New Haven to Cushing Field at 4 p.m. on Sunday, September 13. Attendance is free, courtesy of Eastern Salt and Mahoney Oil.