The Colgate men’s lacrosse team, looking to prove why it got snubbed when passed over for an at-large berth for the 2007 NCAA Tournament, began a tough four-game stretch on Saturday, March 8 that included games with two Patriot League foes, the number-one team in the nation and Vermont.

Colgate began its Patriot League ledger with a win over the perennial second-division Holy Cross Crusaders, 15-5, in Worcester two Saturdays ago. Senior attack Kevin Colleluori continued his unabashed scoring frenzy this season by accruing four goals and two assists. Three of those goals came consecutively within a 2:24 time frame in the middle of the third quarter. Junior midfielder Brandon Corp helped the Colgate cause with three goals and one assist, and his sophomore position-mate Ian Murphy scored a hat trick off the bench. Senior midi Matt Lalli made the greatest state in the Union (that would be New Jersey) proud by adding a goal and a pair of assists. Sophomore goalie Tim Harrington made eight saves en route to his third win this season. Holy Cross was led by Edison Parzanese and Connor Sweeney, who each grabbed a pair of goals.

The Raiders then welcomed the University of Vermont to the sunny confines of Hamilton three days later. After finishing the first quarter tied at three, Colgate shook off the temporary rust in the second quarter by putting up a seven-spot, which enabled them to enter the half with a 10-4 lead. Three of those goals came within 46 seconds of each other at the very beginning of the second quarter. Although the game was over at this point, Colgate and Vermont kept playing for the opportunity to pad their stats. Colgate netted five goals, while Vermont grabbed one; when the final whistle sounded throughout the rolling hills of the Chenango Valley on this chilly evening (surprise, surprise!), Colleluori led the scoring with five goals. Murphy and Lalli came off the bench to combine for five goals and three assists, and Corp got a goal and two assists. Harrington notched 10 saves. Vermont’s Andrew Kelleher led the team with two goals.

After the game, the Raiders began looking forward to a trip to Durham, North Carolina on Tuesday to face Duke, which was the top-ranked team in the nation at the time. Although the Raiders lost by a 15-7 score, Colgate has nothing to be ashamed of. Colgate junior Nick Monastero scored a man-up goal just 41 seconds into the game thanks to an assist from Lalli. Duke then rattled off seven unanswered goals before Murphy notched one before the end of the half, making the score 7-2 in Duke’s favor. The two teams traded goals at the beginning of the second half before the Blue Devils put the game away with five consecutive goals to end the third quarter. The Raiders outscored the Blue Devils, 3-1, in the fourth quarter, and the game ended. Monastero had two goals and an assist for the Raiders, and Corp grabbed a pair of scores as well. Duke managed to cool off Colleluori on this day, as he scored only one goal. Harrington played remarkably well in goal, stopping 16 Duke shots. On the other side, the Blue Devils’ four-headed attacking monster of Nick Danowski, Max Quinzani, Zack Greer and Brad Ross combined for 12 goals and four assists. Colgate closed out this four-game stretch with an 8-3 Easter Sunday loss to then eighth-ranked Navy at Andy Kerr Stadium. The three goals were the lowest total Colgate has scored all year. Lalli opened things up with a goal early in the first period, but it was all Navy from there on out. Eight consecutive Mids’ goals scored throughout the duration of the game doomed the Raiders to their first loss. Lalli and Corp netted a goal each to close out the scoring that ended the game. Harrington had twelve saves in the loss, while Navy goalie Tommy Phelan stopped thirteen shots in his first collegiate start. Nick Mirabito scored a hat trick for Navy, while teammates Tim Paul and Patrick Moran grabbed a pair of goals each. This game marked the first time the Colgate lacrosse team played a game on the football field, and the Raiders will play there three more times this season against Lehigh, Lafayette and second-ranked Syracuse.

The Raiders will play at No. 16 Army on Sunday afternoon in West Point, New York.