LEWISTON, Maine -- Caroline DiGiovanni found the back of the cage in the second minute of action and the No. 4 nationally ranked Babson College Beavers defeated No. 7 Bates field hockey 3-0 Wednesday night at Campus Ave. Field.

Bates (2-1) struggled to get the offense going, tallying just five shots in the contest, none of them on goal. Meanwhile, the Beavers (4-1) recorded nine shots, five on goal. 

Babson wasted no time grabbing the lead, as Jessica Evans found an unmarked DiGiovanni on the left side of the cage for the latter's fourth goal of the season, putting the Bobcats in an immediate hole.

Bates settled down after the initial goal and actually out-shot the Beavers 2-1 in the opening quarter. But attempts from junior Brooke Moloney-Kolenberg (Winchester, Mass.) and senior Maria Femia (Canton, Mass.) both missed wide.

The Beavers notched an insurance tally just over four minutes into the second quarter. Babson earned a penalty corner and Berit Sharrow received a pass on the left side of the shooting circle. She was able to find the stick of teammate Alex Michelotti, who scrambled it into the back of the cage for a 2-0 Babson lead.

The Bobcats trailed 2-0 at halftime, and any hopes of a comeback faded when the Beavers scored again just under three minutes into the third quarter. Sharrow's unassisted tally gave the Beavers a 3-0 lead.

Babson earned nine penalty corners, including five in the second quarter, while the Bobcats finished with three penalty corner chances on the night. 

Junior Kaili Jacobsen (Fairfield, Conn.) made a pair of saves for Bates, while senior captain Anna Lindeis (New Canaan, Conn.) paced the Bobcats with two shots. 

Bates looks to bounce back next Wednesday when they host Thomas College at 7 p.m.