HAMILTON – A 3-0 Marist first quarter proved to be the difference as the Red Foxes outlasted Colgate 12-8 in the season opener for both squads.
 
Colgate trailed 3-0, 7-4 and 10-7 at the three quarter breaks and never could get the game back on even terms. Marist stayed in front thanks to three separate three-goal runs.
 
Anthony Abbadessa led the Raider attack with his fourth career hat trick. The Phoenix junior scored his three goals on just six shots. Sam Cleveland added a pair of goals with an assist, while sophomore Will Blumenberg tallied his first career goal.
 
Abbadessa and Cleveland tied for the team lead in goals last season with 15.
 
For Marist, Gannon Morrison scored four goals in the first half and J.D. Recor scored four goals in the second half. Recor added another midway in the second quarter as the duo combined for 14 of Marist's 21 points.
 
Bottom Line
• Marist 12, Colgate 8
 
Won-Lost Records
• Saturday was the season opener for both teams.
 
Raider Scoring Recap
• Down 3-0, Cleveland and Abbadessa scored unassisted goals 42 seconds apart early in the second quarter. Cleveland's came on a rebound putback, while Abbadessa tallied on a trademark wraparound.
• After Marist posted its second three-goal run, there were three goals scored in the final 34 seconds of the first half.
• Colgate got the first two as Joe Delaney found Abbadessa to pull Colgate within 6-3.
• On the ensuing faceoff, Blumenberg scooped up the groundball and raced in to fire home his first collegiate goal with 23 seconds showing.
• But Marist won the next faceoff and Morrison scored for the fourth time in the game just five seconds before the halftime horn. It was 7-4 Red Foxes at the break.
• Jack Stebbins made it 7-5 with an early second-half goal, but then Recor scored three in succession over a 1:33 stretch to make it 10-5 Marist.
• Abbadessa and Cleveland pulled a couple back later in the third quarter, and Chase Wittich made his triumphant return to the lineup with a fourth-quarter goal that made it 11-8.
• But Colgate, despite hitting three pipes in one possession midway in the period, never could get any closer. An empty net goal provided Marist with the 12-8 final.

Facts & Figures
• Blumenberg was Colgate's groundball leader with a career-high six.
• Delaney had two assists to match his career high.
• Marist was 3-of-3 in extra-man opportunities, to Colgate's 1-of-2.
• Turnovers were even (15-15) and groundballs nearly so, with a slight edge to the Raiders (26-25).
• Faceoffs also were close. Marist opened with an 8-5 edge in the first half only to see the Raiders rally to win 6-of-11 after the break.
• Recor's five goals were a career high, while Morrison tied his collegiate best with four goals.
 
Turning Point
• Might have been the late flurry at the end of the first half.
• Colgate's Abbadessa and Blumenberg scored 11 seconds apart to pull the Raiders within 6-4 and seemingly headed to the locker room with plenty of momentum.
• But a faceoff win and Morrison's fourth goal of the first half thwarted those good feelings and pushed the Red Fox lead back to three.
 
From the Source
• Colgate head coach Mike Murphy: (On the game) "For us, it's trying to play complementary lacrosse. We got some stops, scored some goals, got some other stops and then just couldn't get it within two in certain situations. There were some poise plays we could have made out there but we played a lot of younger guys. It's good to get those guys some game experience, and we've just got to get back after it Monday."
 
Listen to the rest of Coach Murphy's comments HERE.
 
Gate Grab Bag
• Attendance at Crown Field was 347.
 
Up Next
• Colgate hits the road for a Central New York contest at Binghamton.
• It is the season opener for the Bearcats, who finished 4-10 last season.
• Colgate leads the series 11-2, including a 4-0 mark under head coach Mike Murphy.
• The Raiders prevailed 11-4 last year in Hamilton. Binghamton's two wins in the series were consecutive 7-6 triumphs in 2010 and 2011.
• Start time from Vestal is noon.