The Colgate volleyball team entered Patriot League play this weekend, but was defeated by Holy Cross and Army. They are now 6-6 overall, and hold an 0-2

record in Patriot League play. 

On Friday, the Raiders took on the Holy Cross Crusaders in Worcester, Mass. where they fell to the Crusaders 3-2 overall. In the first set, Holy Cross established an early 6-2 lead which motivated head coach Ryan Baker to utilize Colgate’s first timeout. From there, Colgate went on a 4-0 point run to take a slight advantage over the Crusaders at 9-8, and again at 12-11. Yet the momentum shifted again as Holy Cross answered with a 6-0 point run which helped them secure a 25-19 win. 

Holy Cross dominated the beginning of the second set as well, securing a large advantage over Colgate at 12-4, and 19-5. With the score at 22-8, it seemed the Crusaders would quickly finish the second set but the Raiders countered with eight consecutive points to get back into the game. The streak ended with a

service error, putting the score at game point Holy Cross. Colgate answered with another 6-0 point run but fell short, as the

Crusaders took the game 25-22. 

In the third set, although Holy Cross held a slight advantage over the Raiders at 14-12, and then again at 17-14, the score remained close as both teams continued to fight for the lead. Junior outside hitter Brooke Shupryt-Knoop responded with three straight kills to take an 18-17 advantage. Later, the Raiders earned six straight points to take the third set 25-20. 

Colgate took an 11-8 lead in the fourth set, which they pushed to a 16-11 advantage before Holy Cross came back and fought to set the score at 21-20. Senior right side Mari Faines and senior middle blocker Kenzie Hume each earned a block to contribute to a close 25-23 win, and to tie the overall match 2-2.  

After a Crusaders service error, Colgate took the first point of the fifth set. Although numerous unforced errors took place at the start of the match, Holy Cross eventually pulled ahead securing a 9-5 advantage. But the Raiders countered to put the score at 11-10, causing Holy Cross to take a timeout. Even though the

Raiders successfully came back, Holy Cross

utilized a 4-0 point run to close the

15-10 victory. 

Despite the loss, Shupryt-Knoop led the Raiders with kills and an impressive .432 overall hitting percentage. Sophomore outside hitter Kathleen Harris posted 11 kills. Although the Raiders posted hitting percentages of .378 and .310 in the third and fourth sets respectively, the Raiders’ overall hitting percentage was just .188. First-year setter Molly Smith had 29 assists while junior setter Jackie Macy added 22. First-year defensive specialist Elena Simpson led with 14 digs, followed by Harris with 11. 

On Saturday, the Raiders traveled to West Point, N.Y. to compete against Army in a match that ultimately resulted in a

0-3 loss.   

At the start of the first set, although the score was tied 12-all, Army took a 16-12 advantage after a 4-0 point run. From there, they held the momentum as they pushed to secure a 25-17 win. 

In the second set, Army started off strong with a 6-1 point run that they pushed to a 10-4 advantage. They never let up and earned seven of the last eight points of the set for a final score of 25-15. 

Although the score was tied six at the start of the third set, the Black Knights scored the next six consecutive points to take a 12-6 lead over the Raiders. They pushed that advantage to as many as thirteen during the set. Their advantage never wavered, as they took a 25-15

victory and the match. 

The loss could largely be attributed to the Raiders’ overall .024 hitting percentage. Harris led the Raiders with eight kills, and posted eight digs as well. In addition, Macy led with 13 assists. 

“It was a tough weekend for us,” Coach Ryan Baker said. “Give credit to both teams as they played harder than us, which is unacceptable. I could give a lot of excuses, but that won’t solve anything. It’s a new week and I can promise that we will be more physically and

mentally ready.”

Colgate breaks its streak of 12 away matches this weekend with a match against Navy on October 3, at 7 p.m. at Cotterell Court. The Raiders will also host the Lehigh Mountain Hawks at 4 p.m. on Saturday, October 4.