Colgate field hockey has been looking to build off of their win against St. Francis and strengthen their record in preparation for Patriot League play. Unfortunately, however, the team lost to both the University of Albany 3-1 and Bryant University 2-0 this past week.

The game result against Albany was, for the Raiders, as stormy as the weather in Hamilton. After enduring an hour-long delay due to the inclement weather, play was finally underway. Albany came out strong from the beginning, peppering the Colgate goal with shots.

The Great Danes were able to capitalize on their multiple opportunities, and they opened up scoring in the 24th minute. Albany’s Teagan Brown took a shot from long distance that snaked past Colgate’s defenders and was ultimately put away for good by Jess Lindsey. Shortly thereafter, Nina Walters assisted Nicole Savage in scoring her first career goal.

After half time, with the score favoring Albany 2-0, Colgate was able to flaunt their impressive corner-hitting unit. Senior midfielder and captain Mika Ella-Tang took the hit from the corner and fellow senior midfielder and captain Katelyn Nerbonne set up junior Lauren Denenga. Denenga took no hesitation in blasting the shot by Great Danes goalie Kristi Troch, narrowing the margin to 2-1.

This effort proved to be fruitless at the final whistle. Colgate could not rally for another promising look at the goal, and Albany’s Christina Patrick netted yet another for the Great Danes in the 68th minute to ensure their victory.

Although the final score and rain put a damper on the day, senior captain and goalie Sarah Pedersen shone. Pedersen played spectacularly en route to increasing her career saves record of 14 to 15. The game was also her third game of the year in which she stopped 10 or more shots.

In looking for a win to begin their six-game road trip, the Raiders were again disappointed. Bryant was quick to penetrate Colgate’s defense and put away an early goal. Katherine Andrusin slid the shot in the left corner by an outstretched Pedersen less than five minutes into the first half. It was clear that Andrusin had the Raider defense thoroughly figured out, as she was able to score again in the 54th minute of the match. Those two goals were all that Bryant would need to effectively claim their victory against the Raiders.

A lack of any sort of offense seemed to be the Raider team’s main fault in this game. The women were outshot by Bryant 18-4. Nerbonne was the only Colgate player able to get any shots on goal. Both of these shots came from corner hits, an area where the team appears the most cohesive. The unnatural playing surface may have been a major factor in the inability to generate offensive momentum.

“It was tough to move the ball on their field,” Coach Cathy Foto said. “They have game turf, which is much more like grass, and the ball moves so much slower. It’s difficult to translate the skills between surfaces.”

The Raiders will need to get in their rest this week as they still have many games left on their current road trip. Their next contest is at Lehigh University on Saturday at 11 a.m.