The men’s lacrosse team continued their winning ways on a gusty Saturday afternoon with a 14-5 conquest of Sacred Heart. The match marked the Raiders second consecutive home win on Tyler’s field, improving their record to 2-0, while dropping Sacred their first loss of the season. The victory also launched the team into a #20 national ranking in the LAXnews College Beat Rankings, while also leading to a number of votes in the national Nike/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll.

Colgate came out of the blocks flying, building a 5-0 lead in the first quarter, and continued to not take the pressure off a seemingly shell-shocked Sacred Heart squad throughout. Sophomores Kevin Colleluori and Brandon Corp got the rout underway early in the first quarter, with each player finishing two of the first four goals. The uninhibited scoring run continued until late in the third quarter, placing nine different Raiders on the score sheet, and leaving ‘Gate with an insurmountable 13-0 lead.

Colgate seemed to ease off in the final quarter, allowing Sacred Heart to put away five goals and salvage a semblance of respectability. The contest ended with senior Jeff Hiller, sophomore Nick Monastero, and junior Matt “La Cara de la Luna” Lalli, all contributing thee points. Meanwhile, the sophomore tandem of Kevin Colleluori, Brandon “Rolls Royce” Corp, and first-year Ian Murphy all contributed two goals apiece in the victory. For the second successive game junior E.J. “La Respuesta” Atamian released a fierce blast from range to score, leaving the Pioneer goalie in disarray, and creating a massive uproar amongst the Raider faithful. On the defensive end, the ‘Gate starting line held Sacred Heart scoreless while on the turf. Each of Colgate’s four goalies also got time in the game, with first-year Tim Harrington getting credit for the win with three saves. The Raider offense out shot Sacred Heart 43-24 in the match and the Pioneers were also out-muscled 46-30 in groundball situations. 41 Colgate players saw action in the contest, giving the team a great opportunity to test their squad depth leading into a titanic clash of up-state powers, as Colgate travels to Cornell on the 27th.

Junior midfielder Jon Freeberg commented on the team’s success and their upcoming game, explaining “We took a lot of positives out of our first two games, but we are focusing on our opponents one at a time and expecting a fight every time we face someone new.”

Colgate had aspirations of validation on the national scene as they traveled to take on a Cornell team currently ranked 4th in the national polls. The game set the Raiders up for their first real test of the season away from the friendly confines of Tyler’s Field and an opportunity to continue their winning streak; however the Big Red of Cornell had different plans for Tuesday afternoon. Cornell downed the Raiders 16-6 in the contest, handing ‘Gate their first loss of the young season. Cornell begun the game by building a two goal lead at the beginning of the first quarter, but Colgate was quick to respond. The Raiders then rattled off three unanswered goals to gain a 3-2 foothold on the Big Red at the 11:47 mark of the second quarter. This tenuous lead would prove to be the last of the game for Colgate, as Cornell responded with 5 unanswered goals through the 2nd and 3rd quarters, providing an 8-3 advantage. Senior Brendan Hurley broke the scoreless streak with one of his two goals in the 3rd quarter to bring the Raiders within four goals, and stop the goal drought of over 16 minutes. His attempt to restore parity, however, was foiled by another four-goal onslaught by Cornell. This response by the Big Red placed Colgate at a large disadvantage with little time remaining, effectively whipping out comeback hopes.

Cornell out shot Colgate 47 to 20, won the groundball battle by a margin of 41 to 27, and also won 18 of 26 face-off situations. Eric Pittard of Cornell led all scorers with 4 goals and 2 assists. For ‘gate Brendan Hurley and Kevin Colleluori each added two scores, while Brandon Corp notched the other Colgate tally. The Raiders will look to rebound from their first loss on March 3rd, when they host Canisius at 1 pm on Tyler’s Field.