Waterville, Maine- The Colby College White Mules (4-1) topped the Bates College Bobcats (5-3) 13-9 at Seaverns Field in their home opener. In a game that was endured through pounding rain and slippery field conditions, the Mules offense still was able to persevere and generate offensive spurts. Colby was led by Bill Spencer '02 (Sudbury, Mass.) who had five goals, Barron Butler '03 (Marblehead, Mass.) who had a goal and four assists and Josh Cleaver '04 (Kennett Square, Pa.) who had three goals. For the Bobcats Jack Sandler '02 (Hicksville, N.Y.) led the way with three goals and three assists.

The Bobcats opened the scoring when Patrick Gaughan '02 (Duxbury, Mass.) cut down the middle and was fed by Sandler for a 1-0 Bates lead. Mike Haimes '04 (Old Greenwich, Conn.) matched the Bates goal with a pretty move, spinning away from three Bates defenders before firing a shot in the top left corner. The Bobcats, who came out with a great deal of intensity, then jumped out to a 4-1 lead with goals from Peter Friedman '05 (Putney, Vt.), Chris Eckhoff '04 (Wolfeboro, N.H.) and Dave Frederick '02 (W. Hartford, Conn.), with Frederick's goal coming off a pretty bounce shot off the ground. Spencer, showing a flair for the dramatic, then scored off a stoppage of play with :01 second left off the clock, as he fired a shot from 25 feet away before time expired.

The Mules, with a little momentum from Spencer's goal, and after making some offensive changes, came out on fire in the second quarter, scoring seven unanswered goals. Chris Larson '02 (Darien, Conn.) started the scoring as he took a pass while cutting through the Bates defense and fired past the Bobcats goalie. Cleaver then scored two goals as well as Matt Roland '05 (Somers, Conn.), with Cleaverıs second goal coming when he batted a pass out of midair in front of the Bates goalie into the net. Spencer then scored the next three goals before intermission to give the Mules a comfortable 9-4 lead heading into halftime.

After Blake Grosch '02 (Warren, N.J.) put in a goal despite being in the middle of a scrum of Bates defenders and Butler scored off a ground shot the Mules held an 11-4 edge. The Bobcats would now make a run of their own, starting when Sandler sliced through the Mules defense to the front of the net for a goal. Sandler then scored the next two goals to put the pressure on the Mules with the score at 11-7. The Mules were able to hold on for the victory, as they slowed down their offense to kill the clock.

Goals- Bates- Sandler 3, Friedman 2, Gaughan, Frederick, Eckhoff Colby- Spencer 5, Cleaver 3, Larson, Haimes, Roland, Butler, Grosch

- Bates- Sandler 3, Friedman, Frederick, Winterle Colby- Butler 4, Kane 3, Larson, Roland

Faceoffs- Colby 15, Bates 10

Shots- Colby 36, Bates 24

Saves- Colby 7, Bates 10