The women’s soccer team got its Patriot League campaign off to a winning start last Saturday, beating conference foe American University in Washington, D.C., 1-0. The game was a matchup between the pre-season #3 and #4 teams in the Patriot League, so the win certainly helps Colgate’s bid for the conference tournament and further postseason aspirations.

The scoring opened and closed very early on, with Colgate senior captain Josie Johnson scoring the game’s only goal in the 14th minute off an assist from junior midfielder Jillian Arnault. American locked itself in a very defensive formation for the entire match, mustering three shots on goal, all of which were saved by first-year goalkeeper Rebecca Michlin. For her efforts, Michlin was named the Patriot League Goalkeeper of the Week. She earned her second career shutout in the win over American and has produced 41 saves this season, good for fourth in the Patriot League.

The win over American gave the Raiders a 1-0 record in the Patriot League and a 4-7-1 record overall. The Raiders host two Patriot League opponents at Van Doren Field this weekend. Army comes to Hamilton tonight at 7 p.m., fresh off a 2-0 win at Lafayette. Holy Cross visits on Sunday for a 1 p.m. match. With this weekend making up one-third of Colgate’s Patriot League schedule, results are very important for the Raiders at this point.