TROY, NY – Hartwick scored first but the Engineers of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute tallied the final three in a 3-1 loss for the Hawks on Tuesday afternoon at Ned Harkness Field in Troy. The game served as the season opener for both squads.
           
RPI had a golden opportunity to grab the early lead as they earned a penalty stroke at the 11:53 mark of the first half. Kate Batzinger stepped up to take the shot but she was denied by Hartwick goalkeeper Shannon Carter (Falls Church, VA/J.E.B. Stuart).
           
Fifty-three seconds after the Carter save, 'Wick sophomore Claudia Stone (Akron, NY/Akron) collected the ball near midfield, drove into the circle, and fired a far-post shot beyond the reach of RPI keeper Hilary Fiorentino for a 1-0 advantage for the Hawks.
           
The lead was short-lived as the Engineers answered back just 2:12 later. Following a scramble in front of Carter, Mikaela DiBello was there to poke the ball in and the game was tied at 14:58.
           
Stone came back with two straight shots for the Hawks, one which forced a save from Fiorentino, but the score remained even. RPI then turned up the pressure as it registered three shots and five penalty corners in a six-minute span. The Engineers picked up the lead with exactly four minutes to go in the half. After Carter dove to make a save, the ball popped to Megan Jones who put her shot up high for a 2-1 advantage.
           
The Hawks had a solid chance to even things before halftime as they were awarded a penalty stroke of their own with 1:40 left. Maxine Dunn (Peterborough, NH/ConVal) took the shot but her effort was saved by Fiorentino and the Engineers instead went into halftime with the lead.
           
RPI controlled the beginning of the second half as it registered five shots and three corners in the first six and a half minutes. Just over a minute and a half later, the Engineers got an insurance goal as Hana Murphy fed the ball in front to Jones who deflected the ball in off a 'Wick defender and the hosts had a two-goal cushion.
           
RPI would out-shoot the Hawks 9-2 over the next 15 minutes until Catie Kondi (Canaan, NH/Mascoma Valley Regional) had a pair of shots for the Hawks, with the second deflecting off the crossbar with just over seven minutes left in regulation. Hartwick had one last flurry of chances with under two minutes remaining. Reserve keeper Rachel Kaufman stopped three Hartwick shots right in a row, with two coming from Stone and one from Jen Spagnuolo (New Hyde Park, NY/New Hyde Park Mem.), but the Hawks couldn't punch one in and the game ended 3-1.
             
Carter would end the day making 12 saves in the Hawks' cage. Fiorentoni (5) and Kaufman (4) combined for nine stops for the Engineers.
           
Hartwick is off for the next eight days before they host SUNY Oneonta on Wednesday, September 9 at Wright Stadium beginning at 4 p.m.