ITHACA, N.Y. -- The #13 Cornell men's lacrosse team made up for lost time in its highly anticipated season opener against UAlbany, scoring the game's first five goals and seven of the final eight to double up UAlbany, 16-8, on Saturday afternoon in frigid temperatures at Schoellkopf Field.

With the victory, Cornell opens the season 1-0 for the third-straight season, knocking off UAlbany in its first game of the season for the second time in just as many tries.

Playing in his first collegiate game, sophomore attackman CJ Kirst made an immediate impact, notching the game-high in goals (4), assists (3), and points (7) and fueling a Big Red offense that saw six different players record multi-point efforts. Junior midfielder Aiden Blake recorded his first career hat trick as well, scoring four goals of his own and adding an assist for five points. Preseason All-America honorable mention attackman John Piatelli had two goals and two assists and senior attackman Billy Coyle, sophomore midfielder Hugh Kelleher, and junior attackman Michael Long were each credited with two goals and an assist.

The Big Red shot out to a 5-0 lead to open the game, with Kirst notching two of Cornell's first three goals. Cornell found itself leading 7-3 at the end of the first quarter, but UAlbany would outscore Cornell, 3-1, in the second, to cut the Big Red's lead to two at the half, 8-6.

After both teams exchanged goals to open the third quarter, it was all Cornell from here, as the Big Red would stack up seven unanswered goals from the 6:46 mark in the third until UAlbany scored on one last ditch effort with just 29 seconds remaining in the contest. Cornell held the Great Danes scoreless for just under 22 minutes of action spanning the second half of the third quarter and nearly the entirety of the fourth.

The Big Red defense played a vital role in UAlbany's expansive scoring drought, led by goalie Chayse Ierlan, who made six of his eight saves for the game in the second half during the 7-0 run that put the game away for the home team. Senior defenseman Dom Doria made his presence known on Saturday, posting four of the team's seven caused turnovers and adding three ground balls. Freshman Christopher Davis (five) and graduate student Harrison Bardwell (four) combined for nine ground balls, while junior Angelo Petrakis won 10 faceoffs.

Cornell undoubtedly put the pressure on UAlbany in the contest, as the Great Danes turned the ball over 25 times, including eight times on clear attempts (16-of-24).

The #13 Cornell men's lacrosse team will hit the road for the first time of the 2022 campaign when it faces #16 Lehigh on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 1 p.m. in Bethlehem, Pa.