WATERVILLE, Maine -- Junior captain Paige Cote broke the Bates record for assists in a career, junior Kami Lambert recorded her first collegiate hat trick, and the No. 20 nationally ranked Bates field hockey team scored their most goals in a NESCAC game since 2002 in a 6-2 win on the road Tuesday night over rivals Colby College.

With the victory, the Bobcats (9-6, 5-5 NESCAC) secured the seventh seed in the upcoming NESCAC tournament. They will take on second seed and No. 9 nationally ranked Tufts in Medford, Mass. Saturday at 1pm. 

With two assists on Tuesday, Cote (Auburn, Maine) surpasses Julia Price '03 for the most career assists in Bates field hockey history. Cote has 23 assists in her career, with 13 of them coming this year. 

Lambert (Augusta, Maine) continued her breakout campaign for Bates with three goals and one assist against the Mules. She finishes the regular season first on the team and tied for sixth in the NESCAC with 27 points (team-high 12 goals and three assists) on the year. 

Bates grabbed the lead against Colby (6-9, 1-9 NESCAC) early in the first quarter and never looked back. 

In the fourth minute, the Bobcats earned a penalty corner. Lambert delivered the insert and Cote fired a shot from the top of the circle into the back of the cage for the 1-0 lead. 

Bates struck again in the 21st minute when Cote delivered a perfect cross to Lambert who tipped it in for her first goal of the evening.

The Mules responded in the 25th minute when Pernilla Shaw tipped in a shot by Jackie Mortell off a penalty corner, cutting the Bates lead to 2-1.

But the high-scoring second quarter continued in the 29th minute when sophomore Maria Femia (Canton, Mass.) intercepted a Colby pass and beat the goalie for a 3-1 Bates lead.

The Bobcats added to their lead in the third quarter. First, Lambert scored on a penalty stroke in the 38th minute. Then, sophomore Anna Lindeis (New Canaan, Conn.) was able to find Femia for a goal amidst a scramble in front of the cage in the 42nd minute, making the score 5-1 in favor of the Bobcats.

In the fourth quarter, Colby got a second goal off a penalty corner when Mortell scored an unassisted tally for the Mules in the 51st minute. 

Then Lambert capped off the scoring for Bates when Cote snuck a pass across the goal to the left side where Lambert was waiting for the hat trick and the record-breaking assist for Cote.

Six goals is the most Bates has scored in a NESCAC game since September 22, 2002 when the Bobcats defeated Trinity 6-1.