WALTHAM, Mass. – Junior Hannah Gerry (Sudbury/Lincoln-Sudbury Reg. HS) netted the game's only goal at 4:44 of the first overtime and the Falcon defense blanked the high-scoring River Hawks as Bentley University topped defending NCAA Division II national champion UMass-Lowell 1-0 in Northeast-10 Conference field hockey at Bentley Thursday night.

Bentley, number ten in this week's Kookaburra/NFHCA Division II coaches poll,  snapped a two-game slide and improved to 5-6 overall (3-1 NE-10). UMass-Lowell, which had won 10 in a row and 35 of its last 36, dropped to 11-2 overall and 5-1 in the conference. Before falling to the Falcons, the River Hawks had won their last 15 NE-10 games and their last 31 against conference opponents.

From the top of the circle, Falcon junior Nicole Dion (Lunenburg/Lunenburg HS) sent the ball inside to Gerry, who was open near the goal mouth. She knocked it in for her second goal of the season, stunning the visiting River Hawks.  Ironically, Bentley coach Jessica Spencer had a sub at the scorer's table waiting to go in for Gerry.

UMass-Lowell entered the contest as the number two scoring team nationally in Division II, averaging better than five goals a game.  The Falcon defense shut them down, allowing only nine shots (four of those in the first half) and five penalty corners, all coming before halftime.

Junior Julia Powell (Southbury, Conn./Pomeraug HS) made five saves for Bentley, and the defensive quartet of senior Lacey Cumming (Sudbury/Lincoln-Sudbury Reg. HS), junior Kelsey Mattson (Bristol, N.H./Newfound Reg. HS), sophomore Mollie Ricker (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphine HS) and senior Ariann Williams (Winchendon/Dana Hall HS) turned in a sparkling effort in containing UMass-Lowell.

Both teams finished with nine shots, and Bentley had a 7-5 edge in penalty corners, including six in the second half.

Bentley continues its four-game winning streak on Saturday with a 1 pm encounter with American International. That will be the team's Breast Cancer Awareness game as the Falcons will be raising money to help in the fight against that disease.