LOWELL – Graduate student Taylor Burgess (Mendon) blocked six shots, but the UMass Lowell women’s soccer team fell 1-0 to the Warriors of Merrimack College in their season opener Thursday night at Cushing Field.

“This is our third game together as a team, so we are still growing as a team,” said UML head coach Mira Novak. “Of course we didn’t want to start with a loss, but the positive is that we used a lot of players and I think we saw some good individual performances.”

Graduate student Calliste Brookshire (Kingston) led the River Hawks offense with four shots on the night, including three on goal. Senior Hope Santaniello (Agawam), junior Hilary Jean (Las Margaritas, Panama) and freshman Gaby Eckroth (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) each contributed two shots.

The first few minutes were back and forth, with Merrimack holding a 4-1 shot advantage after 15 minutes. It didn’t take long, however, for UMass Lowell to find its chance, firing five shots in less than six minutes. The kickoff came from freshman Nina Hertz-Saebbo (Gothenburg, Sweden), who fired a shot after 30 minutes that the Warriors’ goalie saved.

Merrimack wanted to score one more goal and had three shots on goal before halftime, but thanks to a strong defensive performance by the River Hawks, the team went into the locker room goalless.

At the start of the second half, the Warriors shot at Burgess, who got her hands on the ball and sent it straight into the air. While Burgess was still on the ground, Bella Keogh followed and gently headed the ball into the net, giving Merrimack its first lead at 59:30.

Originally published: 16 August 2024 at 18:13