The Massachusetts field hockey team came out on top against UMass Lowell in a close road game Tuesday night. The Minutewomen improve to 7-3 away from home this season after their 2-1 win.
UMass’ (9-8, 5-2 Atlantic 10) Bella Ianni broke the one-one tie in the third quarter with an unassisted score off a rebound in front of the UMass Lowell’s (7-9) net, sealing the victory.
UMass has aimed of late to show this sort of aggressive offense, especially in front of the net. The emphasis has also been on efficiency, which the Minutewomen certainly showed in tonight’s match, as they put five of their seven shots on goal.
“We are not generating a ton of shots per game, but we are getting good looks when we are,” coach Barb Weinberg said.
The game was not taken easily from UMass Lowell. The Minutewomen went into halftime down 1-0 after Lowell’s Jenna Berger put one past keeper Marlise van Tonder in the 22nd minute.
It was a back and forth matchup, with scoring opportunities shifting from one end to the other and momentum changing each quarter.
“We definitely had momentum in the first quarter but just couldn’t get one in. UMass Lowell did a great job putting the attack on us as well,” Weinberg said. “I think there were passages that we were controlling the game and ones where UMass Lowell was, but the difference was that we were able to capitalize and [van Tonder’s] saves at the end.”
Keeper van Tonder has started the majority of UMass’ games in 2019 and proved herself a valuable component to what has been a solid UMass defense this season, shutting out four opponents and keeping the Minutewomen in contention to win late in games like Tuesday’s.
Before Tuesday, the Minutewomen were 2-5 in games decided by just one goal. If van Tonder had not made a couple phenomenal saves against the River Hawks, the match could have gone into overtime.
“She played fantastic,” Weinberg said, “Late in the third quarter she had faced a one-on-one and made a world class save. She had to dive at the ball and just tipped it with the end of her stick. It was a game-saving [play].”
The River Hawks lost their early lead in the 34th minute after giving up a penalty corner. Forward Katherine Furry connected with Lucy Cooper for her second assist on the season and first since the Minutewomen’s September matchup against Harvard, and Cooper shot the ball from the far side of the post into the back of the net.
Cooper leads the team in scoring so far on the season, and has played an incredibly important role for her team of late.
“She certainly has the momentum right now at the end of the season, and she is peaking at the right time,” Weinberg said, “I expect her to continue on this upward trajectory.”
The game only stayed tied for 16 minutes, and UMass was never able to pull more than one goal ahead after that as both teams held each other in check. The Minutewomen, who earned seven shots and three penalty corners, and the River Hawks, who put up 10 shots and earned four corners, ended the day with similar numbers all around.
UMass has played exceptionally well this year on the road, but have struggled at home with a 2-5 record. It returns home for the next match.
UMass will play VCU in its final A-10 game on Friday at 3 p.m.
Justin Ekstrom can be reached at [email protected].
