The Raiders played a couple big match-ups this weekend, and after two decisive victories over league opponents, the Raiders have clinched a berth in the Patriot League postseason tournament. After a mid-week 11-7 victory at home over the Boston University Terriers, Colgate travelled to Lafayette where they beat the Leopards in a double overtime thriller.z

In what would turn out to be one of the Raiders strongest games of the season, Colgate started off slow against the Terriers on a Wednesday afternoon in Hamilton. It was the final scheduled regular season home game for Colgate, and they wanted to come home victorious. After allowing a Terriers goal just over a minute into the game, the Raiders finally took control.

The scoring for the day started with senior captain Alison Flood who has been consistent all year long and scored in big spots for the Raiders. Getting the pass from junior midfielder Megan Ark, Flood fired in the first Colgate goal of the day. Following in Flood’s footsteps were Ark and first-year defender Sarah Bowles, who has provided plenty of offense on behalf of the Raiders defense.

The Raiders carried the advantage halfway through the first half, but the Terriers were quick to respond with two goals of their own to tie the game back up. A goal from Ark on the man-advantage with just under eight minutes remaining in the half put the Raiders ahead once again, but B.U. was quick to respond.

Knowing how important it was to head into the half with an advantage, the Raiders offense really worked to get on the board one last time before the whistle sounded. It was Flood who came up in a big spot for the Raiders, scoring with just over three minutes remaining and helping to send the Raiders into halftime with a 5-4 lead.

The second half started out slow, with both teams defensive-minded and not giving an inch. Senior captain Monica White broke the scoring drought in the second half, scoring the Raiders’ second man-advantage goal of the game and giving the Raiders a wider margin. After a Terriers goal lowered the lead to one goal, the Raiders were able to score two in quick succession to regain the hold over the game. Flood fed Ark for the first and Bowles scored her second of the game to put the Raiders in the

lead 8-5.

B.U. would not go down without a fight, and scored just 46 seconds after Bowles’ tally to keep the Terriers in the game. But the strong, balanced Colgate attack kept at it and scored three more times to distance themselves from B.U. Ark scored her fourth of the game, and sophomore attacker Kallan Murray tallied twice, with Ark assisting on one, to put the game out of reach.

A goal by the Terriers with five seconds remaining was too little too late, and the Raiders held on for a big 11-7 victory over a tough league opponent.     

The win ensured that a victory over the weekend against the Leopards would push the Raiders into the postseason tournament.

In what turned out to be an unbelievably high-scoring affair, the Raiders held strong with a tough Leopards opponent all game. Colgate was forced to keep pace with Lafayette’s high-octane attack, and they did so, scoring a staggering 16 goals in regulation. The story of the day was Ark’s eight goals on nine shots that kept the Raiders in the game time after time. Close behind Ark in the goals category was White with three, and first-year attacker Tyler Sherper’s two were key.

As the whistle sounded at the end of the second half, the two teams were still deadlocked, and they were forced to go into overtime. After the Leopards scored late in the first half of the first overtime, the Raiders knew they had to have a big response. Murray’s four assists helped propel the Raiders to overtime, but her 12th goal of the season that tied up the game in the first overtime was even bigger.

Heading to a second overtime, the Raiders knew that getting on the board before their opponents would be key. Bowles was the player that came up big, with her tally coming with 19 seconds remaining in the first half of the second overtime. After a defensive rest of the game, the Raiders proudly came away with an 18-17 victory.

The big win for the Raiders pushed them into a third place tie in the Patriot League and guarantees that the Raiders will be playing in the postseason Patriot League tournament. They look to wrap up their regular season this weekend with a final league matchup against the American Eagles.                   

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