MIDDLEBURY, VT.—The SUNY Potsdam men's lacrosse team (1-2) built a 4-0 first quarter lead and outscored Castleton University (0-2) 3-0 in the fourth quarter for a 10-5 victory on Tuesday afternoon. The contest was played at Middlebury College. Senior midfielder Kyle Smith (Theresa, N.Y./Indian River), junior captain Josh Huiatt (Lisbon, N.Y./Hugh C. Williams) and freshman midfielder Alec Miller (Williamsville, N.Y./Williamsville South) each scored twice for the Bears, while senior captain Zach Sheridan (Clay, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) made 14 saves for the win.
 
Four different scorers put Potsdam up for good in the first quarter. Smith opened the scoring at 11:42 with an assist from Huiatt. Huiatt doubled the lead less than two minutes later. Senior attackman Tayte Murray (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) and Miller made it 4-0 after 15 minutes with goals at 5:16 and 3:52. Sheridan kept the Spartans off the board with seven saves.
 
Castleton closed the gap in the second quarter. Tom Pardew netted the Spartans' first goal while a man up at 13:30. Freshman attackman Keenan O'Gorman (Potsdam, N.Y./Potsdam) put Potsdam up 5-1 at 7:53, but Pardew countered at 5:46 and Castleton entered the break down 5-2.
 
The teams alternated goals in the third quarter, with the Spartans outscoring the Bears 3-2. Cameron Russell (13:47), Jason Sedell (10:09) and Colin Clark (0:29) each scored for Castleton, with Clark's goal coming on the man advantage. Miller registered his second for the Bears at 12:50 and Smith scored his second while a man up at 8:45. Potsdam led 7-5 after 45 minutes.
 
The Bears slammed the door in the fourth quarter, outshooting the Spartans 10-4 and keeping them off the board. Senior captain Gabe Carbone (Accord, N.Y./Rondout Valley) shifted the momentum back in Potsdam's favor at 11:37. It was the first of three goals in a 2:03 span. Huiatt buried his second at 9:41 and junior faceoff specialist Luke Vitale (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield Ludlow) won the ensuing restart and put the game away with a marker just seven seconds later. Sheridan needed just two more stops the rest of the way to seal the win.
 
Spartans goalie Brandon Myron made five saves and allowed five goals in the first half. Maxx Ingison replaced him in the second half and put up identical numbers.
 
Potsdam outshot Castleton 33-31 and was 1-for-2 in extra-man opportunities. The Spartans were 2-for-7.
 
Vitale won 11 of his 18 faceoff attempts and picked up a game-high five ground balls. Junior defender Cole Zeller (Canton, N.Y./Hugh C. Williams) and junior long-stick midfielder Brandon Donavan (Erin, N.Y./Notre Dame) collected four and three ground balls, respectively.
 
The Bears are back in action on Saturday at 1 p.m. when they host Hartwick College in their home opener.