(Photo courtesy of UMass Lowell Athletics) “Midfielder Alice Van Hemelen handles the possession with care as the attack builds.”
By Jason Cooke
Connector Editor
It was yet another successful campaign for the UMass Lowell field hockey team last season, beating a pair of Power Four opponents while being nationally ranked. This time around, the River Hawks are off to another solid start as the calendar has flipped to 2025.
Welcoming nine newcomers to the squad this fall, UMass Lowell is off to a 5-5 start and has posted a 1-0 record in conference play in the program’s 50th season.
The season has certainly been highlighted by Head Coach Shannon LeBlanc’s 300th career win. The longtime coach reached the impressive mark in UMass Lowell’s 14-0 victory over New Haven on Sept. 19. The team also set a new single-game program record for goals as 10 different River Hawks found the back of the net.
100 of LeBlanc’s 300 wins have come at the Division 1 level in her 24 seasons as head coach. UMass Lowell has soared as of late under her tenure, turning in a perfect 9-0 record at home last season and achieving the double-digit win mark for the third straight year in 2024.
The River Hawks won’t be perfect at home this season, dropping decisions to UMass Amherst and Northeastern, but, more importantly, the team is off to a strong start in America East play.
On Friday Oct. 3, UMass Lowell played to a 3-1 win over Bryant on the road in Smithfield, R.I., holding the Bulldogs without a shot on goal for the last three quarters of action.
Sophomore Karlijn Kerkhof, junior Alice Van Hemelen and freshman Rena Pistilli all scored goals in the win as the River Hawks scored three unanswered goals to respond to an early tally from Bryant.
Prior to the win against Bryant, UMass Lowell completed an exciting 3-2 overtime triumph over Kent State on Sept. 21. Kerkhof was the hero, scoring two goals, including the game-winner to propel the River Hawks into the win column.
Kerkhof has been all over the scoresheet for UMass Lowell so far, leading the team in goals with nine, assists with five and points with 23. Kerkhof shined UMass Lowell in her debut season last fall, scoring five goals while adding 16 assists. She started in all 18 games en route to America East All-Rookie Team honors.
Elsewhere, seniors Madison Leeper and Ava Clarke played well for the River Hawks. Leeper earned a spot on the All-Conference First Team last fall while leading the team in goals with 13 and assists with a respectable 26.
Meanwhile, Pistilli is one of the many newcomers making an impact for UMass Lowell this season. The Lambaré, Paraguay native, had a two-goal outburst against Yale on Sept. 7.
UMass Lowell was back in action against Dartmouth on Sunday, but the results were not known as of press time. It then jumps back into conference play, with games against Vermont on Oct. 10 and New Hampshire the following week on Oct. 17.
