FINAL SCORE: Vermont 1, Merrimack 1
North Andover, Mass. – Lauren DeGroot was the lone Catamount goal scorer as Vermont (0-0-1) drew with Merrimack (0-0-1) 1-1 on the road in North Andover, Mass. from Martone-Mejail Field on Thursday night.  

RELATED LINKS
Box Score 

COACH'S QUOTE
 "We created a ton of opportunities tonight and I feel good about our performance overall for the first game of the season." said Head Coach Kristi Huizenga. "Merrimack is a team that always fights hard and that early season experience is valuable for our group. It was nice to get some of our new players minutes, and we will look to add more players into the mix with the two-game weekend. I also want to congratulate Merrimack Coach Gabe Mejail on his tremendous milestone of becoming the NCAA soccer all-time leader in games coached… an amazing accomplishment."

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Vermont applied pressure out of the gate, getting four shots on goal in the first nine minutes of the match.
• Shortly after Vermont's strong offensive attack, Merrimack responded in the 11th minute with a goal scored by Kylie Fuller and assisted by Isabella Keogh.
• Momentum shifted again in the 40th minute when Mollyana McGuire received a yellow card.
• At the end of the first half, Vermont trailed Merrimack 1-0. Despite this, the Catamounts had seven shots on goal compared to Merrimack's one.
• In the 50th minute, Lauren Degroot would score an upper banger thanks to a Kaley Kreutzer assist as the Catamounts would tie the game 1-1.
• At the 84th minute, Kaley Kreutzer received a yellow card.
• In the 89th minute, Merrimack's Taylor Pedra would receive a yellow card.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• DeGroot scored Vermont's only goal of the night. This marked her 8th goal of her Catamount career.
• Kreutzer tallied an assist, which marked her 2nd career assist.
• Vermont outshot Merrimack 28-4 and had 18 shots on goal
• Merrimack recorded eight fouls compared to Vermont's three fouls.

UP NEXT
The Catamounts travel to Sacred Heart for a contest on Sunday (Aug. 17). Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. ET and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

For news and updates about the Vermont women's soccer program, follow @UVMwsoccer on Instagram, X, and Facebook, and visit UVMathletics.com.

East Rise Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont soccer