The Colgate field hockey team started the Patriot League with a winning start. The team added to the spirit of Homecoming with a 3-0 win against Holy Cross at Tyler’s Field. 

There was a great turnout at the game and a lot of graduated field hockey alums came back to support their team. The team loves playing at home and showed that through their solid victory. The girls now hold a 1-0 record in the Patriot League and look forward to more wins as the League continues. 

Senior attacker Eliana Brown scored twice for the Raiders, once in the first half and another closing shot in the second half, with assists from fellow senior midfielders Jade Dennett and Rebecca Libutti. Eliana Brown raised her total goals to record scorer on the team. 

“We did exactly what we needed to do today. We had a couple tough loses, but we really came out to get our first major league win, which is huge”, Brown said about the team’s win. 

Junior Jessica Gardiner scored her first goal of the season, adding to the Raiders total. Senior goalkeeper Amanda DiDomizio made nine saves during the game, preventing Holy Cross from any goals during the game. 

Not only were the players excited about their win, but Head Coach Foto was very pleased with the game results. 

“We are always going to be a team that works hard and works smart, and today was a result of them working smart and taking care of business. I’m really happy”, Foto said.

On September 21, the girls played a close game against Boston College at Tyler’s Field. After a close game, the Raiders lost against the almost undefeated opponent. Despite the loss, Coach Foto was still impressed by the girls’ perseverance throughout the game. 

”I was really proud of the fight in our team today. We started off slowly, but rallied to put up three goals on a nationally ranked team in the first half. Playing back-to-back games, especially against a ranked ACC team was a challenge we rose up to. They have exceptional depth and were able to wear us down in the second half. We are definitely making progress and our team showed great fight today,” Foto said. 

The team remained tied 3-3 at the halftime break, but were unable to keep a defensive strategy for the remainder of the game, which led to the final score of 6-3. However, after Holy Cross and Boston College, the Raiders raised their shots on goal percentage to 0.75 with an average of seven shots per game. 

The Raiders take on their second Patriot League game against Lafayette University on September 27 at home on Tyler’s Field as they hope to extend their winning streak in League play.