LEWISTON – Starting the game down by a couple of goals is often regarded in the same light as a pool player’s cue ball being stuck behind the eight ball.

On Thursday, Lewiston put itself behind the eight ball, and added in a damaged cue stick for good measure, allowing Morse to build a five-goal lead in the first 5:47 before righting the ship.

It was too late.

Morse rode the momentum of those first five goals and played solid defense the rest of the way, holding on to upend the Blue Devils 10-7 at Bates College’s Campus Avenue Field.

“We had a tough one the other day against Oxford Hills,” Morse coach Linda Levesque said. “We were ahead 2-0 and then we fell apart. Even at 5-0 today, we had to make sure we didn’t go out and feel like world-beaters, and keep playing with intensity.”

Beth Suggs had four goals for the Shipbuilders (1-2) and added a pair of assists, while Tiffany Russell added a pair of goals and three helpers in the victory.

“In practice, we’ve been working a lot on connecting as a team, helping each other out,” Suggs said. “We want to make sure everyone keeps working together, so that we don’t have just one or two all-stars scoring, but that we have everyone getting in on it.”

Suggs and Russell are Morse’s two leaders on offense this season.

“They came back with the most experience,” Levesque said. “They work very well together.”

Twice, it was Russell who found Suggs streaking through the center seam for a quick one-timer, and twice more it was the other way around.

On the other end, six different Blue Devils (1-2) found the net behind Morse keeper Lisett Anderson. Kirsten McCombs led the charge with two.

“Honestly, the 5-0 deficit wasn’t as bad as it sounds,” Lewiston coach Christy Gardner said. “We had plenty of scoring opportunities, and we should have been able to get those goals back and then some. We didn’t play smart on the attack.”

Gardner said she was hoping her squad would take better advantage of its durability and fitness level.

“From the start of the game, they were winded quickly,” Gardner said. “They played much cleaner and more physical, but I felt if we’d stretched it end to end more, we could have worn them out a bit.”

Elizabeth Sener popped in a pair, Suggs added two and Russell one in the first 5:47, staking their team to a 5-0 advantage. Lewiston called timeout, regrouped and scored a pair to draw within three at 5-2, but Lindsey Watts of Morse capped the first half with a goal to send the teams into the break at 6-2.

Sener added her third of the game and Russell her second early in the second half to push the Shipbuilders’ lead to 8-2 before the Devils began their charge. Kim Archibald, McCombs and Kayla Hamel scored to again draw their team within three.

The teams traded goals from there, and Lewiston ran out of time.