Box Score FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Sacred Heart University women's lacrosse team opened the 2024 campaign on Sunday afternoon at Campus Field with a 15-7 home setback against the UMass Lowell River Hawks in non-conference play.

Records:
Sacred Heart: 0-1
UMass Lowell: 1-0

Top Performers:
Emma Kittredge: 2 goals 
Maggie Araneo: 2 goals
Kelly Nolan: 1 goal, 2 assists 

Goalkeepers: 
SHU - Lisa Martin (0-1): 13 goals-against | 5 saves
SHU – Juliana Henry: 2 goals-against | 2 saves
UML – Hannah Shaddock (1-0): 6 goals-against | 4 saves
UML – Kendall Whalen: 2 goal-against | 4 saves

How it Happened:
The River Hawks jumped out to an early 2-0 lead three minutes in, but an unassisted tally from Emma Kittredge cut the deficit in half, 2-1. 

Shortly after, UMass Lowell responded with a 3-0 run to extend its lead to 4-1, but Maggie Araneo managed to find the back of the net at the 5:05 mark to trim the lead to two, 4-2. However, the Pioneers trailed 5-2 at the end of one, following a River Hawks' goal from Jade Catlin. 

The visitors controlled the second period, outshooting the Pioneers by a 4-2 margin. Maci Black highlighted the period for the Pioneers with a man-up goal at 13:44, while Emi Waldron netted her first of the year with 4:25 remaining. 

Trailing 9-4, SHU came out of the halftime break with the hot hand as Kelly Nolan and Kittredge scored less than two minutes apart, bringing the Pioneers to within three, 9-6. Unfortunately, the River Hawks went on a scoring spree and led 13-6 heading into the final 15 minutes of regulation. 

The fourth quarter saw a defensive battle between the Pioneers and River Hawks, with the visitors coming up on top, 15-7. 

Up Next:
SHU is back in action against Bryant on Saturday, Feb. 17. The first draw control is set for noon in Smithfield, R.I.