The women’s field hockey team had a strong start to their season with a 2-1 win against Bryant University in their first home game. The team lost their match-up against the Bulldogs last season, so the team came out focused and driven

to win. 

The Raiders scored twice within the first 15 minutes and continued to maintain a strong defensive strategy to win the game. The two goals were scored by sophomore attacker Whitney Jones and senior attacker Eliana Brown. Before the season started Brown was named to the all-Patriot League Preseason team,  due to her past as one of the leading scorers in the Patriot League as well as the Raiders. 

Head Coach Cathy Foto has coached the Field Hockey team for 25 seasons with a total of 163 wins. She was also named Patriot League Coach of the Year for her work in the 1996 and 2004 seasons. Talking about her outlook on the season, Coach Foto has a

positive view. 

“The girls have a lot of heart, which has been one of their focuses. They are a group that is really committed to the things that they’ve outlined as their goals,” Foto said of the team.

Although the team had a disappointing record of 4-13 (2-4) last season, the girls are optimistic about their upcoming season and rely on their new team dynamic to lead a victorious season. 

“Every year the team takes on its own personality,” Foto said of the team’s new look.  “I think the seniors for this group were really focused on getting back to Colgate in the best shape they could be, so they were organizing things in the summer to help people focus on their training. They’ve carried their summer dynamic and focus on fitness into

the preseason.” 

There are eight new first-year girls on the team and each one is excited to contribute to the team. First-year Caroline Schaefer highlighted how she and the rest of the team had a great start to the season. 

“The field hockey team is made up of really supportive girls that have made all the first-years feel welcome. So far our season has been a lot of fun and I can’t wait to see what we

accomplish,” Schaefer noted. 

While the Raiders looked strong in their first match-up against Bryant, they did not fare as well Sunday, losing their game against Hofstra University at home by a score of 7-1. The Pride were powered by superstar junior Lauren Del Valle who scored four times in the first 17 minutes to put Hofstra in a commanding lead. 

While the Raiders could not seem to slow down the strong Pride attack, senior midfielder Jade Dennett did tally her first goal of the season for the Raiders off of assists from a pair of defenders in senior Rebecca Libutti and junior

Jessica Gardiner.

Upcoming for the Raiders this weekend will be two more home match-ups, with the Cornell Big Red coming in to town on Friday, September 5, and the Ball State Cardinals the very next day. From there, the Raiders hit the road before returning to open Patriot League play against the Holy Cross Crusaders.