FINAL SCORE: Vermont 12, Fairfield 5
FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Ian MacKay and Ben French each tallied a hat trick while Liam Rischmann and Rob Hudson added a pair of goals each as the University of Vermont men's lacrosse team took a 12-5 road win over Fairfield on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Catamounts improve to 3-0 to start the season for the second consecutive year while the Stags lose their season opener to drop to 0-1.
 
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"Today we competed in all phases of the game against a very well coached Fairfield team," head coach Chris Feifs said. "I believe we showed strong progress in reducing our overall turnovers. The team is excited to get back to work this week in preparation for Holy Cross."
 
Hudson opened the scoring six minutes into the first quarter and added a second goal with 1:50 left. Both of his goals came unassisted and the opening quarter ended with Vermont holding a 2-0 lead.
 
Vermont scored six straight goals to open the second quarter before the Stags got on the board with 1:42 remaining in the half. MacKay scored two of his goals and added a pair of assists in the Catamount offensive outburst. French added another pair while Braiden Davis added a goal and an assist to give UVM an 8-1 halftime lead.
 
Fairfield's goal in the opening half came a man down, Vermont's first such goal allowed on the year.
 
MacKay tallied his third goal in the first minute of the third quarter and French added his third in the opening minute of the fourth quarter as Vermont maintained its lead in the second half and cruised to a 12-5 win.
 
Nick Washuta made 13 saves and allowed four goals to earn the win. Freshman Ryan Cornell made his collegiate debut in net, making three saves while allowing a single goal.
 
Sean McKee made eight saves and took the loss for Fairfield. Sam Gindhart made six saves while allowing four goals in relief.
 
Fairfield went 14-for-21 on faceoffs and was even with the Catamounts in shots on goal with 21 apiece. The Catamounts committed 13 turnovers compared to Fairfield's 14 giveaways. Vermont held a slight 28-26 edge in ground balls over the Stags.
 
With the victory, the Cats Win, Community Wins campaign and Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate another $100 to the Boys and Girls Club of Burlington, bringing this year's total to 96 wins and $9,600.
 
Vermont heads to Worcester, Massachusetts for a non-conference game against the Holy Cross Crusaders at 2 p.m. next Saturday, Feb. 17. Holy Cross opened its season with a 9-6 loss against Providence College.