FINAL SCORE: Vermont 1, UMass Lowell 0 (OT)
BURLINGTON, Vt. – For the fourth straight season, the Catamounts bounced back with a win in the second America East matchup on the schedule.
Sarah Martin scored the game-winning goal with 36 ticks left on the clock to give UVM a 1-0 victory over UMass Lowell on Sunday afternoon at Virtue Field.
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Vermont improves to 6-4-1 overall and 1-1-0 in the America East. UMass Lowell drops to 3-6-2 and 1-1-1 in conference play.
Martin was determined to find the back of the net as the midfielder attempted 11 of the team's 23 shots.
UMass Lowell controlled the tempo of the game in the opening minutes with a pair of missed opportunities. In the fourth minute, Elle Cooper passed a low cross in front of the net, but the River Hawks could not find anyone on the other end for the score. In the eighth minute, Rachel Morrier lined a shot at
Coco Speckmaier (6 saves), but the junior goalie punched away the attempt to keep the shutout intact.
The tide began to turn in the second half with UVM getting presented with more scoring chances. In the 60th minute, Martin set up the Catamounts' offense with a free kick, but her shot attempt was right at UMass Lowell keeper Julia Schneider (13 saves). Two minutes later, Martin tapped a ball to
Nikki McFarland in the box, but three River Hawk defenders swept in to kill the attack.
Late in the first overtime session, Martin was looking to win it for the Catamounts with a shot into the bottom left corner of the net, but her attempt was stopped by Schneider.
As the game looked destined for a second overtime period, the River Hawks were charged with a foul and Martin rushed to get a shot attempt off before time ran out. Martin set up her free kick by dropping the ball, taking two steps, and firing a bending laser into the top left corner of the net from about 25 yards out.
The conference home opener was the annual Rally Against Cancer Game, presented by Otter Creek Awnings and Vermont Custom Closets, as the team wore pink socks to support cancer research and education efforts.
Vermont plays the first game of a two-game conference road trip on Thursday (Oct. 6) at Stony Brook. The conference matchup starts at 7 p.m. and all the action can be seen live for free in HD via AmericaEast.TV.
