The University of Massachusetts women's soccer team kicked off its 2011 campaign with a 2-1 win Tuesday at New Hampshire, the first time the program has opened a season with a victory since 2007.

"I'm very happy to see us go on the road and get a win," said coach Ed Matz, who played a handful of newcomers in the team's opener. "We still have a lot to work on, but this is a tough place to go into and win, so it was good for us to get this win so early in the year."

The Minutewomen opened up the scoring when a pair of transfers connected in the 17th minute of their first game with the program. Julie Morrissey scored off a pass from Cecilia Jensen. Morrissey, after playing at Cincinnati for three years, transferred to UMass this year. Jensen, a Boxborough-native transferred to UMass after one year playing at Elon.

"Getting that first goal really seemed to take the pressure off," Matz said. "It also helped us come out for the second half really loose and confident."

The Minutewomen doubled their lead when Jen Houtmann put a shot in the back of the net in the 85th minute to give her team a 2-0 advantage. Despite a late goal by Brooke Duchaney (89th minute), UMass played well enough on defense to hold on for the victory.

Stephanie Gordon, a transfer from Northeastern, saved nine shots on net.

"It was really good to see her out there and help us set the tempo and slow the game down when we needed it," Matz said. "It was nice to see her play so well, especially after she sat out for a whole year."