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LOWELL, Mass. – Coming off a loss against a nationally ranked opponent, the UMass Lowell men’s lacrosse team (2-2, 0-0 AE) looks to earn a bounce-back win when it takes on Queens University of Charlotte (2-4) in a neutral-site game on Tuesday, March 10, before opening conference play at Binghamton (1-5, 0-0 AE) on Saturday, March 14.

LAST TIME OUT

Sophomore Danny Burke (Eden Prairie, Minn.) scored a career-high five goals, as the UMass Lowell men’s lacrosse team (2-2) faced an 18-8 setback at the #19 Massachusetts Minutemen (6-1) on Tuesday afternoon. Burke, who also added a ground ball collected, was one of seven River Hawks to record at least a point. Sophomore Alex Lafreniere (Chelmsford, Mass.) finished with a goal and an assist, while junior Jackson Schlicker (Portland, Ore.) and redshirt sophomore James Donnelly (Ottawa, Ontario) each found the back of the net once. Rounding things out, juniors Colby Frigon (Providence, R.I.) and Justin Alexander (Franklin, Mass.) each added an assist. In net, junior Carter O’Brien (Concord, Mass.) made a personal-best 14 saves.

LEADING THE FLOCK

Through three games, sophomore Alex Lafreniere (Chelmsford, Mass.) and Burke lead the team with nine goals and 12 points each, while Donnelly posts a squad-leading five assists. Behind them, four other River Hawks total at least five points, while four others have at least two points. At the X, Alexander owns a .690 (69-100) win percentage, while collecting a team-high 42 ground balls. Defensively, Schlicker adds six caused turnovers and three ground balls, and in net O’Brien, junior Scott Kosakowski (Westport, Ct.), and sophomore AJ True (Manchester, N.H.) have all split time, with O’Brien leading the way with 24 saves in two starts.

 

RECORDING RECORDS

In the team’s second game of the year against Mercyhurst, Donnelly put on a show, totaling five goals and three assists, both career-highs, to set a new DI single-game program record with eight points. He also made sure to come up clutch for the River Hawks, scoring twice in the final four minutes, including once with six seconds remaining, to send the game to overtime, setting up the thrilling, 14-13 double overtime finish.

 

OVERTIME MADNESS

The River Hawks put their resilience to the test early in the season, rallying from a three-goal deficit in the fourth quarter against Mercyhurst to send the battle to overtime. The defense stood strong in extra time, not allowing a single shot, to push the game to a second extra period, where Frigon went on to score the game-winner for UMass Lowell with 1:35 remaining. The win marked the first overtime victory for the River Hawks since taking down conference foe UMBC, 13-12, in overtime during the 2019 season.

SCOUTING QUEENS

The Royals enter Tuesday’s game with a 2-4 record, dropping their last two games to VMI and LIU. Individually, Carter Petersen leads the team with 23 points and 16 goals, while Ryan McDaniel’s 11 assists pace the squad. Defensively, four members of the team caused at least four turnovers, and five members total collected at least 10 ground balls. In net, Boston Badraun has made four starts, going 1-2 with 31 saves in those appearances.

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS

Binghamton enters Saturday’s contest with a 1-5 record, most recently taking down Mercyhurst before falling to Stony Brook. Andrew Girolamo leads the team as the only player with double-digit points, totaling 13 goals and four assists for 17 points, while Will Feldmann adds a team-high five assists. Four different Bearcats post at least five caused turnovers, and in net, Connor Winters has started all six games, making 87 saves and allowing 58 goals for a .600 save percentage.

MATCHUP HISTORY

UMass Lowell and Queens have battled once, with Queens earning an overtime victory last year. Meanwhile, the River Hawks and Bearcats have faced off ten times, with Binghamton owning an 8-2 record in those games.