LEWISTON, Maine --Bates College men's soccer welcomed Saint Joseph's College of Maine to Russell Street Field Wednesday and wasted no time making a statement in their season opener. In front of an energized home crowd, Bates struck three times in the first half and never looked back, setting a confident tone for the campaign ahead with the 3-0 triumph.
First-year Luke Cunniffe (Windham, Maine) opened the scoring in the 16th minute (15:34), burying his first collegiate goal off a perfectly placed corner from senior Tomas Alberola (Denver, Colo.). Both senior captain Lane Foushée; (Brunswick, Maine) and junior captain Andrew Goddard (Enfield, Conn.) earned assists on the tally.
Just four minutes later, Foushée; doubled the lead with a goal of his own. Alberola was once again at the center of the play, creating a breakaway opportunity and finding his fellow senior for the finish after a miscue by the Monks' goalkeeper.
The Bobcats weren't done. First-year Chris Bianco (East Greenwich, R.I.) came off the bench and immediately made an impact, slotting home the third goal of the night with an assist from junior Craddock Bridge (Celina, Ohio). It was also Bianco's first career tally, capping off a dominant first half for Bates.
On the defensive side, Bates controlled the game from start to finish, allowing just three shots while unleashing 23 of their own. Sophomore George Nassar (Newtonville, Mass.) recorded the goalkeeping decision for the victors, collecting a lone save in the shutout.
With the victory, the Bobcats (1-0) remain perfect this century against Saint Joseph's (0-2), improving to 10-0 in the series since 2000.
Bates looks to carry the momentum into conference play this Saturday when they travel to Trinity for their NESCAC opener at 2 p.m.
