Sept. 11, 2015 
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(4-1-0)
| | | 1 | 2 | F | | Lafayette | 1 | 0 | 1 | | Mass-Lowell | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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(0-5-0)
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| | | Scoring Summary | | Player | Assist | Time | | LC - Brannigan | Unassisted | 11:22 |
| | | | Goalkeepers | | Player | Mins | GA | S | | LC - Sedillo | 45:00 | 0 | 2 | | LC - O'Brien | 45:00 | 0 | 2 | | UML - Schneider | 90:00 | 1 | 3 |
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LOWELL, Mass. - Freshman Katie Brannigan willed the ball across the goal line in the 12th minute for her second career goal and the game-winner on Friday evening in Lowell, Mass. as the Lafayette women's soccer team held on for a 1-0 victory over UMass-Lowell.
Off a corner, Lowell goalkeeper Julia Schneider came off her line to try to catch the ball above the heads of her defenders and the Lafayette forwards. Instead, Schneider misplayed it and the ball fell to the chest of Brannigan on the opposite side, who willed it just over the goal line before it was cleared for the lone tally in the game.
"It wasn't our best performance, but we found a way to win, which is crucial as we continue to grow as a team," head coach Mick Statham said. "The spirit of the players is fabulous to be around and we will take wins in different fashions if we have to."
All three of the Leopards' best scoring chances came in the opening 45-minute session as the Maroon and White almost got on the board just six minutes later. Breaking out in a counter-attack, junior Elizabeth Scoda sprinted up the middle of the field and slipped a pass across the front of a defender to her left side to a cutting Melissa Lynskey. Lynskey dribbled into the box and took a tough angle shot that just missed the outside of the near post.
Just over 10 minutes later, Brannigan almost had her second marker of the game to give the Leopards some insurance. Setting up a free kick from just outside the box, lined up with the left-center of the goal, Brannigan sent a curling shot from right to left that was saved off the post and out for a corner by Schneider.
Junior Danielle Sedillo and sophomore Kelly O'Brien split halves in net, each picking up a share of the clean sheet. Sedillo made two saves in her 45-minute segment, while O'Brien picked up a pair of saves during the second half of play.
Senior Kelly Chickering was all over the field on the defensive side of the ball, taking away a number of would-be scoring chances from the River Hawks. Lowell managed 11 shots on the afternoon, with four on target, while Lafayette took nine shots and put four of those on goal.
The Maroon and White will remain up north through the weekend, taking on New Hampshire on Sunday in a 2 p.m. contest.
