Ravens travel to Bentley on Saturday

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RINDGE, N.H. (September 12, 2012) – Senior forward Emily Painten scored three goals on Wednesday evening to lead No. 4 nationally ranked Massachusetts Lowell to a 5-0 win over the Franklin Pierce University field hockey team in non-conference play at Sodexo Field. Junior forward Rachel McCarthy added a goal and an assist for the River Hawks.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 2-2 (0-0 Northeast-10), while Lowell improves to 4-1 (0-0 Northeast-10). The two teams will play their Northeast-10 Conference match on Oct. 6 at Lowell.

The River Hawks opened the scoring just 7:19 into the contest, when the Franklin Pierce defense fell on the ball in the goalmouth, resulting in a penalty stroke. McCarthy put the stroke to the back of the net for her team-leading eighth goal of the season. It would prove to be the only goal the team needed on the evening.

Lowell would add two more goals before halftime to take a 3-0 lead into the break. With 12:37 to play in the first half, Painten got her first of the game, and second of the season, we she tracked down the ball in a scramble in front of the cage and put it away. Just 2:05 after that, sophomore midfielder Bianca Jones tracked down a loose ball near the penalty spot and fired a quick shot to score her second of the season.

Painten would score twice in the first 8:19 of the second half to complete her hat trick. Just 46 seconds into the stanza, off a penalty corner, McCarthy sent the ball towards the cage from the top of the circle. Painten was waiting for the shot at the right post to deflect it behind Franklin Pierce freshman goalkeeper Sarah Cote (Athol, Mass.). Painten later scored her third goal on a backhander through traffic from the right side of the circle to create the 5-0 final.

Cote made two saves against seven shots on her goal and took the loss (2-2) in net for Franklin Pierce. Senior back Alyssa Juszczyk (Warren, Mass.) made her second and third defensive saves of the season on the backline for the Ravens. She now has seven in her carer, tying Kayleigh Jaksina '09 for second in school history. Kayleigh's younger sister, Kim Jaksina '12, has the school record of 14.

Junior Melanie Hopkins started and stopped both shots she faced over the opening 59:21 to pick up the win (4-1) between the pipes for Lowell. Freshman Bryanna Bourbeau played the final 10:39, but did not face a shot, to complete the team shutout for the River Hawks, their fourth of the season.

The Ravens return to the field on Saturday, Sept. 15, when they travel to Bentley for a non-conference contest. Game time is set for 1 p.m. in Waltham, Mass. Franklin Pierce next plays at home on Saturday, Sept. 22 against Southern Connecticut State at 4 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics).