Colgate volleyball celebrated senior night and a 3-0 sweep over Lafayette Saturday at Cotterell Court, as regular season Patriot League play came to a close. 

The team’s four seniors were honored prior to the match: right side and outside hitter Katie Fauntleroy, setter Jackie Macy, right side hitter Kate Reilly and outside hitter Brooke Shupryt-Knoop.

“Jackie, Brooke and Reilly are like sisters and best friends to me. We’ve been through everything together and you can see that connection on and off the court,” Fauntleroy said. 

With this weekend’s win, Colgate finished regular season play with an overall 12-15 record, and a 10-6 record in the Patriot League. In the first set against the Leopards, Colgate secured an early 5-0 lead. The Raiders held a 9-4 advantage when a kill from first-year outside hitter Katie Stansbury sparked a 5-0 run to put Colgate ahead 13-4. Lafayette was able to bring the score within three at 19-16, but Colgate closed out the set with a four point run to take a 25-18 win. 

Lafayette answered in the second set and took a 11-6 advantage. A kill from junior outside hitter Kathleen Harris started a 5-0 run that put the score at 11-all. The two teams traded points until another kill from Harris started a five point run that put the Raiders up 21-15. Colgate used that advantage to secure another 25-18 victory and a 2-0 lead. 

The Raiders’ momentum carried over into the third set as the team pushed a 4-1 lead to a 9-3 advantage. With the score at 14-8, a Lafayette service error started a 5-0 run for the Raiders, leading to a 18-8 advantage. From there, Colgate cruised to a 25-14 victory, finished off with a kill from sophomore setter Lauren Sanderson for the sweep. 

Harris led the Raiders with 13 kills, followed by first-year middle blocker Jaelah Hutchison with nine, and junior right side and outside hitter Katie Stebbins with five. Junior defensive specialist Madison McAndrews led on defense with 22 digs, and Macy posted 20 assists and 11 digs. 

“I think [this senior class has] been the glue. You know they came in as first-year and we won a championship. They’re just the most selfless and loyal group collectively; it’s never about them, it’s about us winning,” head coach Ryan Baker said. 

“The people on this team become your family here and have made time absolutely fly by way too fast,” Fauntleroy added. 

The Raiders are seeded fourth in the Patriot League Championship this weekend. They will start off the tournament with a match against American on Saturday at American’s Bender Arena in Washington, D.C. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. and will be available to stream online via the Colgate Athletics website. Given all of the success that several Colgate teams have had in their Patriot League quests, it will be interesting to see if the women’s volleyball team can bring this winning mentality on campus to the next couple of games and bring home a Patriot League title.