PURCHASE, N.Y. – Sophomore Alex Lafreniere (Chelmsford, Mass.) scored two goals and added an assist, as the UMass Lowell men’s lacrosse team (2-3) fell to Queens University of Charlotte (3-4), 8-5, in a neutral-site defensive battle on Tuesday afternoon.
“Today I thought we played a really solid defensive game, but didn’t have our usual offensive punch,” commented Head Coach Drew Kelleher. “Credit to Queens who limited our early offense, but we need to get back to our identity on the offensive end. Excited to have a quick turnaround with league play starting on Saturday.”
Lafreniere, who has now recorded multiple points in all five games this season, was one of four River Hawks to record at least a point in the contest. Redshirt sophomore James Donnelly (Ottawa, Ontario) added a pair of goals, while junior Colby Frigon (Providence, R.I.) added a goal as well. Rounding things out, sophomore Danny Burke (Eden Prairie, Minn.) finished with an assist. In net, sophomore AJ True (Manchester, N.H.) made 14 saves in his second start of the season.
Although the Royals registered the first goal of the game under three minutes into the contest, the River Hawks fired right back, as Lafreniere dished a pass out to Donnelly, who promptly ripped a shot past the keeper, knotting the score up at 1-1 with 11:51 on the clock. Moments later, Queens added their second goal of the afternoon, but UMass Lowell finished the quarter strong, as Frigon scored with 9:10 left, followed up by a goal from Lafreniere with under 15 seconds to play, giving his squad a 3-2 lead through one.
In the second, the River Hawks continued their strong defensive start, now allowing a goal for nearly eight minutes, extending the Royals’ scoreless stretch to 18 minutes. The opposition finally struck, though, with 7:12 to play, before adding two more goals to own a 5-3 lead heading into the break.
Looking to start the second half strong, the River Hawks’ defense locked in, holding the opposition scoreless past the midway point of the third quarter. Meanwhile, Donnelly found the back of the net for the second time of the afternoon to cut the difference to 5-4 with 11:54 on the clock. The Royals countered with a strong defensive showing of their own while adding two goals of their own to take a three-goal advantage, 7-4, into the final quarter.
In the fourth, the River Hawks looked to make a comeback, with Lafreniere scoring his second goal of the game after a Royals’ goal to keep it a three-goal difference. UMass Lowell continued to battle, but Queens refused to let the game get any closer, sealing the 8-5 decision.
Next up, the River Hawks open America East conference play on Saturday, March 14, when they visit the Binghamton Bearcats. Opening faceoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. at Bearcats Sports Complex in Vestal, N.Y.