In a battle of the UMass’s, the Massachusetts women’s lacrosse team triumphed over UMass Lowell, 18-7, at Garber Field on Tuesday. With its 10th consecutive win, the Minutewomen (12-3, 9-0 Atlantic 10) remain undefeated against the River Hawks (11-4, 5-0 America East), improving to 7-0 all-time.
The opening moments of the second quarter quickly turned into a battle of possession and patience. Though UMass held a 7-2 lead, UMass Lowell found cracks in the Minutewomen’s defense. Just over a minute into the quarter, Jade Catlin seized an opportunity with a clear shot on UMass goalie Catrina Tobin’s net. Tobin got a stick on the ball, but it rolled back into the net for the River Hawks’ third goal of the contest. Riding this momentum, Catlin struck again less than two minutes later, exploiting a woman-up advantage and further closing the gap.
UMass responded with urgency, regaining control just 50 seconds later. Delaney Rodriguez-Shaw, stationed at the center of the 8-meter arc, pivoted sharply to her right before cutting back in and unleashing a rocket past UMass Lowell goalie Alexa Kuhn. While the River Hawks converted once more following a failed free-position attempt, the Minutewomen closed the quarter with another three goals.
“Higher pressure early and trusting each other was really key for us [Tuesday],” head coach Jana Drummond said. “You could really see them doing that, which was great.”
UMass wasted no time coming out of the gates. Following a blocked free position shot by the River Hawks, Tobin cleared the ball up field. The sequence culminated in attacker Kassidy Morris finding herself in a prime position to score against Kuhn. With a clear line of sight, Morris fired the ball into the back of the net, putting the Minutewomen on the board. Less than two minutes later, Tessa Shields added to the tally with another clean shot. Morris struck again just over 30 seconds after that, completing a hat trick in the first quarter. Ava Connaughton joined the early scoring spree, finding the net twice in the frame.
Connaughton continued to shine throughout the game, finishing with four goals, matching her season-high performance against Davidson. The Westwood, Mass. native was crucial for UMass, converting four of her seven shots, five of which were on target.
“[Connaughton] is connected with everyone,” Drummond said. “She’s just able to read different situations, her IQ is strong and her creativity is there. She just plays free.”
The second half began with a flurry of turnovers, resulting in multiple possession changes. This back-and-forth disrupted the offensive flow, significantly slowing the scoring pace, especially for UMass Lowell, which was held to just one goal in the quarter.
“Learning from [last game], we were a little bit quiet, we weren’t as aggressive, [we] weren’t getting out early on their hands, so I think we focused on that [Tuesday] and it came out well for us,” Drummond said.
Connaughton continued her standout performance with a woman-up goal early in the third, while Rodriguez-Shaw added another off a free-position shot. Of the Minutewomen’s 18 goals, six came from free-position opportunities.
“They’re really patient in finding the best look, which I think is where we get those fouls from,” Drummond said. “We took a lot of different hits, and the physicality was high, which is exactly what we want to feel.”
Rodriguez-Shaw had quite the game as well, finishing with five goals and one assist. After UMass Lowell managed to score a goal late in the quarter, the Minutewomen extended their lead to 14-6.
In the fourth quarter, the Minutewomen added four more goals, putting the game firmly out of reach. Dylan Lyons initiated the scoring, followed by goals from Lil Hancock and Lauren Tolve. UMass’ defense stayed strong, limiting UMass Lowell’s opportunities and causing turnovers that disrupted any chance of a late comeback.
“Just going in there, prepping, making the adjustments from this game and just continuing to get better and progress [will] help set us up for next weekend,” Drummond said. “Getting through George Mason [and] focusing on everything we can do to get ourselves better will put us in a good spot.”
The Minutewomen return to Garber Field to face George Mason in their last regular-season game on Saturday, April 26. Opening faceoff is set for 12 p.m., and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Kate Endres can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X at @Kate_e_endres.
