Women's Soccer Wins Third Straight, Tops UML 2-0
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Two different players found the back of the net in the first half, and the Merrimack women's soccer team picked up its third straight victory, 2-0, over visiting UMass-Lowell in Northeast-10 Conference Action on Wednesday afternoon at Martone-Mejail Field.
By means of the win, the Warriors improve to 7-2 overall with a 5-1 mark in conference action, while the River Hawks sink to 3-4-1 with a 2-4 NE-10 record.
The home side would do all of the damage in the first 45 minutes of action before the defense kept UMass-Lowell off the board in a scoreless second half, as the Warriors maintained their second-place spot in the NE-10 standings by means of the victory.
Junior goalkeeper Nicole Curtis (Billerica, Mass.) earned her second shutout of the season by means of a six-save performance, while Jane Hatzikonstantis recorded one save before being relieved for Jill Carlson, who notched three stops for the visitors.
Junior forward Jenna Zechner (Billerica, Mass.) put the Warriors on the board 10 minutes into the game, netting her second tally of the season on an interesting goal that started with a throw-in. Junior Jackie Sullivan (North Andover, Mass.) began the play on a long toss from around 30 yards out on the right side. The throw-in rolled through a number of players from both sides before finding Zechner at the top of the box, and the Billerica, Mass., native got enough of the loose ball to roll it by Hatzikonstantis for put the home side ahead, 1-0, in the 11th minute.
Merrimack would double the advantage nearly 13 minutes. Zechner again found herself involved in the scoring play, lifting a long cross from right-to-left that Hatzikonstantis misplayed, allowing junior Danielle Dion (Grosvenordale, Conn.) to cash in for her team-leading 10th goal of the year, making it 2-0 Merrimack in the 24th minute.
That lead would hold for the remainder of the first half, one that Merrimack owned a 10-4 advantage in shot attempts with four on net.
Throughout the second half, the River Hawks were stymied time and time again by the Merrimack defense. Despite the visitors' 8-7 advantage in shot attempts, the Warriors allowed only four to reach Curtis, who was perfect in stopping all four shots on goal she faced in the second stanza.
In total, the Warriors held a 17-12 advantage in shot attempts and also led, 6-4, in corner kick attempts. Both teams combined for 20 fouls over the course of the match, as well.
Next up, Merrimack travels to a nationally ranked New Haven squad on Saturday, Sept. 29, for another huge NE-10 showdown. First whistle is set for 1 p.m.
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