“It’s good that Lee was unstoppable on the day,” head coach Steve Adlard said. “With his speed, quickness and change of direction, they had no answer for that, so credit to him.”

Despite the outcome of the game, the Golden Eagles struggled early against their intrastate opponent. The Phoenix (2-11-1), which have dropped eight straight matches, scored the first goal of the game at the 3:10 mark when Adam Schmitt received for a lofted crossing pass from teammate Lorcan Cronin and headed the ball into the goal while standing near the left post.

Senior goalkeeper Adam Ubert said the ease with which Wisconsin-Green Bay scored its early goal served as a wake-up call for the Golden Eagles.

“I think we came out a little dumbfounded,” he said. “We expected just being out on the field we were going to beat them. At least we were able to get back into it and score before the first half was over because that forced them to come out and play, and that’s when we took over the game.”

Marquette scored the equalizing goal in the 35th minute when Lee collected a pass from senior defender Zach McCallum, dribbled to his right and fired past Phoenix goalkeeper Dave Palmer.

Lee and McCallum struck again in the 52nd minute off a corner kick from senior midfielder Tony Walby. Lee headed Walby’s entry pass towards the left post, where McCallum was waiting to collect his first goal of the season.

Adlard said he was pleased to see McCallum earn some more visible recognition for his typically solid play on the defense.

“That goal was a wonderful reward for what he did in the game,” Adlard said. “I think he played brilliantly.”

The Golden Eagles struck again 50 seconds later when senior midfielder Matt Darby forced a turnover and played a clearance pass toward Lee. Lee found himself in prime position to score his second goal of the game.

Lee’s scoring barrage ended in the 61st minute. After collecting a pass from freshman midfielder Richie Harris, Lee faced the defense and fired a left-footed bullet into the upper-right corner of the goal.

Lee, whose second hat trick of the season increased his Conference USA-leading goal total to 13, gave credit to his teammates for getting him goal scoring opportunities.

“I’ve been kind of lucky,” he said. ” My team has been giving me the ball at the right time and putting me in the right position to score some goals.”

Somewhat overshadowed by the Golden Eagles strong offensive production was the solid play of the defense. Ubert faced eight shots, making two saves on three shots on goal before being replaced by sophomore Richie Ilk in the 79th minute. By comparison, Wisconsin-Green Bay’s Palmer faced 12 shots, making two saves on six shots on goal.

The Golden Eagles (8-7-1, 4-2-1 in C-USA) return to Valley Fields to take on cross-town rival and regular season Horizon League champions Wisconsin-Milwaukee (12-4-1) at 7 p.m. Wednesday for what Adlard expects to be a competitive game.

“I think the game will be emotional and physical like it’s supposed to be,” Adlard said. “Both teams recognize that there is a great rivalry and it’s one of the those games that it’s almost like a season within a season.”