UMASS LOWELL DEFEATED BY PRINCETON, 5-2

Junior forward David Vallorani scored a goal for the River Hawks

PRINCETON, N.J. - Leading by a goal for more than half of the game, UMass Lowell hockey allowed four Princeton scores in the final eight minutes to fall 5-2 at the Hobey Baker Rink on Friday night.

The River Hawks' loss, their eighth consecutive, drops their record to 2-13-2 overall. The Tigers earned their first non-conference win of the season, improving to 7-5-0.

The River Hawks wasted no time capitalizing on an early Princeton penalty. David Vallorani (Hamilton, Ont.) took a pass from Derek Arnold (Foxboro, Mass.) to the goalie's left and ripped a wrist shot at Sean Bonar (Delta, B.C.). The shot hit a defenseman guarding the weak-side and was redirected into the net. The goal at 2:19 was Vallorani's fourth of the season and granted UMass Lowell a first period road lead for the first time since Oct. 19 against RIT.

The lead was erased by the Tigers' Jack Berger (St. Louis, Mo.) at 14:42 into the first. After Doug Carr (Hanover, Mass.) made a pair of saves, Berger knocked in the loose puck for his first career score, knotting the game at 1-1.

The River Hawks would not be deterred, striking back in the second period with a goal by Matt Ferreira (Brampton, Ont.) at 10:44. Nicky Curry (Augusta, Ga.) put a back-handed shot on the left post that bounced through the crease to Ferreira on the weak-side for the rebound score. The tally was Ferreira's third of the season and reclaimed a 2-1 advantage for UMass Lowell.

The lead unraveled in the third as the River Hawks allowed four goals in the final 8:02, including a hat trick by Andrew Ammon (Aldie, Va.).

Matt Arhontas (Naperville, Ill.) got the ball rolling for Princeton, putting in a shot off a UMass Lowell defenseman at 11:58. That was quickly followed by a break-away tally, power play goal and empty net score by Ammon.

Despite allowing four goals, Carr (2-9-1) was terrific in net for the River Hawks. The freshman made 40 saves, one short of his career-high, and stymied four of the Tigers' five power plays. Princeton's Bonar made 16 stops to improve to 4-1-0 on the season.

UMass Lowell will have a chance at redemption as it rematches the Tigers on Saturday night at 7 p.m. The contest will be the River Hawks last before the holiday break.