Women’s Lax Gets First League Win
Raiders Bounce Back After Series of Tough Losses
The Colgate Women’s Lacrosse team had an excellent team win over Holy Cross on Saturday, March 23, defeating the Crusaders 13-10 to secure their first Patriot League win and snap a five-game losing streak. Colgate had a number of players contribute to this win. First-year midfielder Claudia Pilcher scored her first career goal and didn’t stop here. She secured two other goals for the Raiders to finish the day with a hat trick.
“After our last few games ended in tough losses, I think we were just really hungry for a win and knew that in order to beat Holy Cross we were going to have to leave everything out on the field. All throughout practice this week we focused on working our plays and outlasting the other team on both ends of the field. Everyone fought so hard this weekend and worked together as a team up until the final seconds. I’m really excited to see what else we have in store this season as we move forward in Patriot League play.” Pilcher said.
Junior attacker Lindsay West performed well yet again, scoring for the fifth straight game for a total of 12 on the season. West has now recorded multi-goal games in back-to-back games and in three of the last four games. Another key contributor on the offensive end was senior attacker Tara Atkinson, who secured 7 points for the Raiders, with three goals and four assists for the Raiders. This is her first hat trick of the season and her third multi-goal game of the year.
“I think we really needed this win. We came out strong and ended strong. Sam came up with some clutch saves and we put the ball in the back of the net!” Atkinson said.
Junior midfielder Noelle Patterson had yet another outstanding performance for the Raiders. She added two goals for the Raiders, which now totals 17 scores on the season, leading the team. Patterson has scored a goal in all nine games this season, and has a total of 21 points.
“Today was a much needed and great team win, having four people score multiple goals and Tara having seven points was huge for us. Our team finally connected all over the field and I can’t wait for Boston on Wednesday,” Patterson said.
Colgate’s defense had a strong performance as well, particularly from junior goalie Samantha Croston, who recorded an impressive 14 saves. This game was just shy of her season-high performance of 15 saves against Wagner on March 3rd.
“For the first time in a while, we played a full 60 minutes today and executed on the offensive end. It’s always great to have seven different players record a point. Tara Atkinson stepped up big with seven points and freshman Claudia Pilcher went for a hat trick for her first three collegiate goals. Samantha Croston also had a tremendous day in cage for us with 14 saves. We look forward to a rest day tomorrow after a long week of practice then back to Boston for a mid-week Patriot League game,” Head Coach Liz Belville said.
The Raiders have a ton of momentum coming off of their first Patriot League win and are looking forward to their big week ahead with a game against Bucknell. Raiders will be at home to celebrate Senior Day on Saturday, March 30 at 1 p.m. as they take on the Bucknell Bison. Be sure to stay tuned and cheer on your Raiders!
Contact Kate Kelly at [email protected].
