Box Score

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Colgate women's volleyball team kept its set streak alive thanks to a come-from-behind win in the third as the Raiders defeated Holy Cross by a 3-0 (25-18, 25-12, 28-26) score.

The Raiders (19-6, 11-1 PL) were down 23-14 in the third set and responded with a 14-3 run to come all the way back to earn the 28-26 win. 

Colgate has now won 23 consecutive sets, which dates back to the Loyola match at home on Oct. 12. The Raiders move to 7-2 on the road with the win and are unbeaten away from Cotterell Court in conference play at 6-0.

"Wins come in all different shapes and sizes," head coach Ryan Baker said. "This certainly wasn't our best performance, but we found a way to win. Jackie Macy did a great job coming in and settling the match down."

Kathleen Harris led the way with a double-double on 11 kills and 10 digs. Kaylee Fifer added 21 helpers and Caitlin Cremin posted 14 digs. A big difference in the match was Colgate's 22.1 hitting percentage to the Crusaders' three percent efficiency at the net.

Holy Cross (7-17, 2-12) was led by Mandy Sifferlen, who recorded seven kills and Katie McKernan added 18 assists and three aces. Emily Popp was the leader on the backline with 13 digs.

The Raiders jumped out to an early 12-4 lead and had a quick 8-1 run that helped the cause. Diane Seely had three of her seven kills on the day in the first 12 points, while Allie Dyer, Macy and Harris had aces. The Crusaders climbed back in the set with five consecutive points to cut the Colgate advantage down to 16-12. Seely then added two more kills and contributed to the 22-13 lead, but Holy Cross chipped away once again. The Crusaders got to within four points, however three errors down the stretch did them in and Colgate took the 1-0 lead with a 25-18 win.

In the second set, the Raiders kept the momentum and earned a 15-7 advantage thanks to a 7-1 run with kills from Lindsay Young and Kenzie Hume, while Lexi Finger got on the stat sheet with an ace.  Holy Cross had no answer for Colgate after the fast start and the Raiders cruised to a 25-12 win to take a 2-0 lead in the match.

The drama in the third set began with the score 23-14 in favor of the Crusaders.

Holy Cross had no answer for the Raiders during a run of seven consecutive points, which cut the lead to 23-21. Kate Reilly and Young had some big strikes to get Colgate back in the game. The Crusaders were able to get set point at 24-21, but couldn't close out the Raiders.

The set continued with four-straight points, highlighted by another ace from Finger and a pair of errors from Holy Cross. Colgate had match point at 25-24 and then lost it after two quick points from the Crusaders. With the set on the line, Harris and Reilly delivered two strikes to get match point back and then Emily Oliver's attack sailed over the heads of the Raiders to give Colgate the 28-26 win and the sweep.

"The third set comeback was really impressive," Baker said. "We got some big swings at crucial times, which is what was needed."

Colgate is back at home next weekend as the Raiders face Navy and Lehigh in the final Cotterell Court matches of the regular season.

GAME ARCHIVE