FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 19, 2012
River Hawks make leap in midst of five-game winning streak
SOUTH EASTON, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Lowell appeared at No. 12 in the third edition of the NSCAA/Continental Tire NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Poll, which was released on Tuesday afternoon.
UMass Lowell (5-0-1, 4-0-0 NE-10) was last ranked nationally to begin the 2009 season.
Now winners of five straight, the River Hawks earned a key 3-2 victory over nationally ranked Franklin Pierce University last week before following it up with a 4-3 victory at Assumption College. UMass Lowell followed it up with a convincing 4-1 win over American International College on Tuesday night to move to 4-0 in Northeast-10 Conference play.
UMass Lowell has been led offensively by senior Bruno Bonicontro (pictured) and sophomore Homero Morais. Bonicontro has five goals and an assist for 11 points, while Morais has four goals and two helpers for 10 points.
Southern New Hampshire University (4-1, 1-1 NE-10) and Franklin Pierce (3-1, 1-1 NE-10) had been ranked third and sixth, respectively, but both teams went 1-1 last week, which led to both teams falling in the poll. So. New Hampshire fell to No. 24 after suffering a 1-0 loss at Franklin Pierce this past Saturday, while Franklin Pierce came in at No. 19.
Five Northeast-10 schools were also among the top-10 in the
NSCAA East
Region Poll. UMass Lowell was second only to LIU Post, while
Franklin Pierce and So. New Hampshire were ranked third and
fourth.
Southern Connecticut State University (3-0, 2-0 NE-10) was fifth
in the East rankings and Merrimack College (3-2-1, 1-2-0 NE-10)
finished eighth.
The Northeast-10 Conference is an association of 16 NCAA Division
II colleges and universities located in New England and New York
that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic
opportunities for more than 6,000 student-athletes. Each year,
4,000 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships
in 23 sports, making the NE-10 the largest DII conference in the
country. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within
the community, the Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive
program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
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