VOLLEYBALL GAME CENTRAL

HAMILTON, N.Y. (10/14/10) – The Colgate women's volleyball team will look to get back on track this weekend with a visit to Holy Cross and Army.

The Patriot League weekend begins with a Friday night match at Holy Cross at 7 p.m., followed by a 4 p.m. start on Saturday at Army. Visit Volleyball Game Central for all the necessary links to follow the Raiders. Live stats or live video will not be available for the Holy Cross match and video is not available for the Army match.

LAST TIME OUT
Colgate dropped two matches last week against Albany and Bucknell. The match at Albany took place on Wednesday in the final non-conference match for the Raiders. The first set was the longest of the season for Colgate as the team's combined for 64 points with the Great Danes coming away with a 33-31 win. The Raiders were able to extend the match to a fourth set after being down 2-0 in the match, but Albany took the fourth game and the match. At Bucknell, they erased a 2-0 deficit with wins in the third and fourth set, but couldn't get over the hump as Colgate dropped the match and the final set by a 15-10.

FIVE SET SUCCESS
The Raiders have seen success in five set matches this season with a 6-2 mark. The six wins are the most since 1995 when Colgate went 6-1 overall in five-set matches. This season the Raiders have played in more five-set matches than three or four set matches. They have played six three-setters (2-4) and five four-setters (2-3).

PATRIOT LEAGUE STATS
American is dominating all team categories as the Eagles lead in all stats except digs where they are sixth in the conference. Colgate is tied for second with Army in hitting percentage at .169. The Raiders have 906 kills on 2,709 attacks and 449 errors. The 906 kills put them third in the league behind Army and American. Top performers for the Raiders include, rookie Kaylee Fifer (Lantana, Texas) is fourth in assists with 436 on the year, while senior captain Devon Applegate (Davidson, N.C.) is second in the league with 3.83 digs per set and has 295 digs. Senior captain Casey Ritt (Colorado Springs, Colo.) is fifth in blocks, averaging 0.92 blocks per set and has a total of 72 this year and 15 solo blocks to lead the conference.

UPCOMING MILESTONE
With 10 wins so far this season, head coach Ryan Baker now has 93 career victories to put him seven away from 100 in his career. He has 71 wins while with the Raiders. He was at Clarkson for a season prior to Colgate and posted a 22-11 record. With his 71 wins with the program he now has the second most wins by a Colgate coach. He is trailing only Janet Little, who had 385 wins in her 17 seasons.

SCOUTING THE CRUSADERS
Holy Cross enters this weekend with a 10-14 mark overall and a 2-3 mark in conference play. The Crusaders have alternated wins and losses the past seven matches including a split at Navy and American.

They are led by Meagan Lynch, who has 312 kills on 992 attempts and 139 errors. She also has 269 digs for second on the team. Angela Chisholm leads the squad with 314 digs. Chelsay O'Donnell is racking up the assists with 759 on the season and averages 8.72 per set. She also is tops on the team with 30 service aces. Rebecca DeSanti has been a consistent player in most errors with 132 kills and 103, along with 17 service aces.

SERIES HISTORY
Colgate has dominated the series between the Raiders and Crusaders with a 36-4 advantage in 40 matches. The Raiders last dropped a match against Holy Cross in 2004 with a 3-0 loss. Since then Colgate has reeled off 10-straight wins with only four going four-more games. The teams first met back in 1983 with Colgate winning 2-0. Last season, The Raiders swept the season series with a 3-2 win in the first match and a 3-0 sweep in the second.