This past weekend the Raiders traveled to Philadelphia to participate in the Crowne Plaza Philadelphia West Invitational at the Palestra, and closed out the tournament with a 1-2 record.  

“This weekend was a chance for our team to learn and get better,” senior middle blocker Diane Seely said. “With lots of new faces on the floor and an ever-changing line up, it is important that we continue to put ourselves in difficult game situations now so that we can work out the kinks before Patriot League play begins.”

Despite an admirable performance from Seely, who earned a .316 hitting percentage over the course of the match, the Raiders were defeated by the Penn Quakers in three sets. Although the score was tied at 11 in the first set, the Quakers went on an 11-4 run to defeat the Raiders 25-20.  Although Colgate came back in the second set and kept the score close until the end, Penn narrowly took the second set 25-23. Penn did not let up in the third set, taking a 13-3 lead from the start. The Quakers went on to take the set (25-15) and the match. 

The Raiders were challenged by Penn’s strong offense, led by junior Alex Caldwell with seven kills. The difference in offensive play during the match was also reflected in the overall hitting percentages of both teams, as the Quakers posted an overall .168, compared to Colgate’s .074. In addition, Penn finished out the third set with no attacking errors, posting 11 kills out of 21 attempts. 

On Saturday, Colgate took on Georgetown and Cleveland State. The Raiders fell to the Georgetown Hoyas in three, but rallied in their third and final match of the tournament to defeat Cleveland State. 

Georgetown started out strong in the first set, taking the first seven points of the match and an early lead. Their momentum continued as the Hoyas earned a .440 hitting percentage for the game, leading to a 25-14 victory over the Raiders. Colgate answered in the second set starting off with a 10-8 lead. However, the Hoyas countered with a 10-2 run, taking the lead at 18-12. Georgetown did not let up and took the second set 25-18. 

In the third set, Colgate was down by five with the score at 15-10. The Raiders came back with a 7-3 point run putting the Raiders within one of Georgetown. Yet the Hoyas countered once again, taking seven of the last eight points of the match to

defeat the Raiders 25-18. 

Sophomore outside hitter Kathleen Harris led the Raiders with 11 kills against Georgetown, followed by Seely with seven. First-year setter Molly Smith recorded 17 assists followed by junior setter Jackie Macy with 12. Junior right side Kate Reilly posted a team-high eight digs as well. 

Later that afternoon, Colgate took on Cleveland State. Both teams fought for the lead until the score was tied at 22. Then Reilly earned an ace, Seely secured a kill and the Raiders to earned three of the final four points to win the set 25-23. The second set started close as well, but Colgate went on an 8-2 run to push their narrow 11-10 lead to a 19-12 advantage.

The Raiders held the lead until the end

securing a 25-18 win. 

In the third set, Colgate kept their momentum going and took an early 13-5 lead. The Vikings then countered with a 6-1 run, to make it a much closer game at 19-17. But the Raiders rallied once again with a 6-2 run to close the match and the third set with a final score of 25-19. 

Senior right side Mari Faines was a huge contributor to the Raiders’ victory with a .800 percentage after posting eight kills out of 10 swings with no hitting errors. Reilly also added seven kills, and 23 attempts over the course of the match with only one hitting error. The Raiders had 14 blocks over the course of the match led by Seely with seven and Reilly with five. 

Colgate finished the Invitational 1-2, and holds an overall record of 2-2 for the season thus far. This upcoming weekend, the Raiders will travel to Nebraska for the Husker Invitational, where they will

compete against Akron, Denver

and Nebraska.