Volleyball Falls to American

The Colgate women’s volleyball team faced a fierce opponent in the first round of Patriot League Tournament matches. Unfortunately, they were unable to rise to the occasion and fell in a 3-1 battle to

reigning champions, American University to end the season.

“I am so proud of how we played that day, it was a total team effort,” Head Coach Ryan Baker said. “We challenged American on every play, but I felt its size and physical style hurt us in some

key moments.”

The Eagles turned it on early with a 10-5 lead at the start of the first set with three blocks to quiet the Raider offense. Colgate chipped away with a 6-1 run to tie the teams at 11 thanks to a few American errors and a kill from senior Maureen Colligan at the net. After trading possession for a few points, the Eagles came out on top with a 21-17 lead at the wire, and pushed through for a 25-20 win.

The Raiders got fired up for the second set, however, and took their largest lead at 12-9 with a pair of kills by Colligan and one from both sophomore Lindsay Young and junior Michelle McCarthy. Colgate ran with its lead and kept the Eagles at bay for the rest of the set. When American gained some momentum, coach Ryan Baker made his own play with a timeout to freeze the Eagles.

Following the break, McCarthy and Young closed out the 25-22 score with one kill apiece.

Set number three marked the most competitive strings of points for the match. Neither team was able to break away in the first 20 points. In the 10-10 tie, American finally took the first definitive lead with a 7-2 run padded by three Colgate errors. The Raiders regrouped and pushed forward, reaching within two points at the 21-19 mark with yet another kill by McCarthy. American was able to stay on top down the stretch and took the third set 25-19 with only one left before sending the

Raiders packing.

Set number four began with another back-and-forth affair between the two teams, but the Eagles once again took the lead in the middle of the set and never gave it up. They earned six points at 18-12 and pushed until reaching the finish line at 25-17 to end the set and match.

“This team has had to overcome some major adversities in terms of key injuries and other uncontrollable events, yet they never complained and worked hard on a daily basis,” Baker explained. “I am so lucky to have had such a dedicated group with strong senior leadership.”

Colligan and classmates Alexis Griffith, Kaylee Dougherty and Blaire Safir all ended their Colgate volleyball careers with the pride of two Patriot League final appearances and unmistakable talent.

Contact Emma Barge at

[email protected].