BELMONT, N.C. – Colorado Mesa men's lacrosse nearly came back from a four-goal deficit in the fourth quarter but fell one goal short, suffering its first loss of the season by a 12-11 score to Belmont Abbey.

The No. 19 Mavericks scored three unanswered goals in the game's final five minutes, including two from Jed Brummett, but could not find an equalizer against the Crusaders, who were receiving votes in the USILA National Poll. CMU's record now sits at 2-1 with one game left in North Carolina and three total games left on the Mavs' first cross-country road trip of the season.

Brummett continued his torrid start to the season with another five goals, making it 14 in three games for the redshirt junior. AJ Switzer, Drew Eickelman and Sal Iaria each had three-point nights.

The Mavs outshot Belmont Abbey 55-33. Crusaders goalie Thomas Sullivan, the reigning Defensive Player of the Week in his conference, had another signature performance by making 21 saves to stymie the Mavericks. Calvin Doucette made nine saves in goal for CMU.

The Mavericks won the face-off battle 13-12, scooped 31 ground balls to Belmont Abbey's 25, went a perfect 21-for-21 on clears and had eight fewer turnovers than their opponents (26-18), but Sullivan made one too many plays against the Maverick attack.

Colorado Mesa took an early 2-1 lead thanks to goals from Drew Eickelman and AJ Switzer, but Belmont Abbey responded with three goals in a three-minute span to lead 4-2 at the end of one quarter. The Mavs flipped the script by scoring the final two goals of the first half via Sergio Pelayo and Jed Brummett to head to halftime trailing by just one at 7-6. Belmont Abbey took control with a third quarter in which they outscored CMU 4-1. The Mavericks ultimately matched that scoring margin with their comeback attempt in the fourth quarter.

Drew Eickelman added his second goal early in the period but when Belmont Abbey's Riley Arsenault scored to make it 12-8 with 5:39 to go, it became a long way back for CMU. The Mavs made a valiant effort, with Jed Brummett and AJ Switzer quickly finding the net before Brummett's fifth made it 12-11 with 2:30 left. But Sullivan stepped up, making saves on Iaria and Hunter Holcomb while James Steinke saw a shot blocked in the final minute and a half. Caleb Schrieber's final shot attempt went wide with two seconds remaining.

The Mavs hit the field next on Tuesday against Mount Olive, who like Belmont Abbey are receiving votes in the USILA national poll. First faceoff is set for 11 a.m.