THROGGS NECK, NY – The Maritime College men's lacrosse team scored 10 seconds into its season opener against Coast Guard on Saturday afternoon.  The Privateers (1-0) never trailed and led by as many as five goals before holding off a late comeback attempt by the Bears (0-1) to notch a 14-12 victory at Reinhart Field.

Despite Coast Guard winning the opening faceoff, Luke Caliendo (North Babylon, NY) immediately forced a turnover and Joseph Bruno (East Islip, NY) picked up the ground ball before scoring on Maritime's first shot of the season.  Caliendo then assisted on Connor Tomich's (Sayville, NY) tally that gave the Privateers a 2-0 lead at the 10:24 mark of the first quarter.  Maritime held a 4-3 lead at the end of the period, then outscored the Bears 5-2 in the second quarter to extend its advantage to 9-5 at halftime.

After Coast Guard pulled within 10-9 midway through the third quarter, Parker Reilly (West Islip, NY) and Caliendo found the back of the net to make the margin 12-9.  The Privateers' cushion reached five at 14-9 when Nicholas Uzakewicz (Hauppauge, NY) scored with 3:15 remaining.  However, the Bears rallied for three goals in 45 seconds to cut their deficit to 14-12 with 52 seconds left.  Coast Guard controlled the ensuing faceoff, but Maritime's defense held and the Privateers earned their second straight season-opening win.

Seven different Maritime players scored in the contest, led by Reilly's four goals.  Ryan Hannaford (Bayport, NY) had a hat trick in his first collegiate game, and Uzakewicz tallied five points on a goal and four assists.  Tomich, meanwhile, finished with two goals and two assists.  Caliendo recorded two goals and an assist to go along with three ground balls.  In addition to making 15 saves, goalkeeper Michael Monahan (Ronkonkoma, NY) (1-0) picked up a team-best six ground balls.

For the Bears, Eric Key posted six points on three goals and three assists.  Ezekiel Christian also found the back of the net three times, while Ryan Hunter scored twice and Ryder Bonser had two assists.  Mason Tucker went 23-for-28 on faceoffs and collected nine ground balls, as Coast Guard held a 39-26 edge in that category.  The Bears also outshot the Privateers 59-30.  Dustin Miller (0-1) was credited with six saves in net.

On Wednesday, Maritime hits the road for the first time this season when it visits New Paltz (0-0) at 3 p.m.  The Privateers beat the Hawks, 20-9, at Reinhart Field in their 2024 opener.