HAMILTON – Colgate picked up the breakthrough victory it had been striving for with a 1-0 triumph over rival Cornell here Sunday afternoon.
 
Just 24 hours after a narrow, hard-fought setback to American, the Raiders once again were solid from start to finish. Maggie Lake scored in the first half and Colgate's defense kept the Big Red off the scoreboard for just the second time all season.
 
Maria Krull made 11 saves for her third career shutout and second this fall.
 
The game's only goal came midway in the first half after a penalty corner, which was taken by Lake. She passed to the middle and the ball ended up on the stick of Cady Kopsky, who fired on goal. Lake was on the spot for the deflection and the first goal of her career.
 
Cornell applied plenty of pressure in the second half. The Big Red earned a penalty stroke 12 minutes into the period, but the attempt by Kirsten Pienaar sailed wide to the left.
 
Krull made six saves over the final 35 minutes and Colgate held on to snap a four-game losing streak to the Big Red.
 
Bottom Line
• Colgate 1, Cornell 0

Won-Lost Records
• Colgate improved to 3-11.
• Cornell is now 7-5.

Stats of the Game
• Caroline Schaefer was the shots leader for Colgate with four, including one on goal.
• Kopsky's assist was her first of the season.
• Cornell posted a 14-7 edge in shots.
• Penalty corners finished 3-3.
 
Notables
• Colgate's win was its second by a 1-0 scoresheet this year. The Raiders topped Siena back on Sept. 6.
• The victory snapped an eight-game losing streak since that Siena triumph.
• The most recent Raider victory over Cornell was 1-0 in Ithaca back in 2011. That also was the program's last win over an Ivy League opponent.
• Sunday's win was the first against Cornell on home turf since 2006. Two years ago, the Raiders suffered a 9-0 setback to Cornell at Tyler's Field.
 
From the Sources
• Colgate head coach April Cornell: (On the win) "It was a really exciting team effort today. We came out with confidence and we dominated early on in the game. With that type of play, it just continued to build our team confidence and you could really see them gelling and connecting with one another.
 
"The finishing in that last 10 minutes is what I'm really excited about. Having the composure is something I'm looking for -- not only from our upperclassmen and seniors but our first-year players. We have so many first-year players who are out there on the field. It really worked out well for us and it's part of the learning process. We're improving every day."
 
Listen to the rest of Coach Cornell's comments HERE.
 
• Colgate goalkeeper Maria Krull: (On the win) "We came off yesterday where we played good team offense, good team defense, but we couldn't come up with the win. But we came back out with that fire today. We scored a goal early and we held the lead. We played great team offense and great team defense, and it was just great to see."
 
Listen to the rest of Krull's comments HERE.
 
• Colgate midfielder Maggie Lake: (On her goal) "We ended up earning a corner, and that's something we've been focusing on a lot this season – getting tips and deflections off corner shots. So it was awesome to finally accomplish that and get up early in the game."
 
Listen to the rest of Lake's comments HERE.
 
Gate Grab Bag
• A vocal Colgate crowd of 177 was on hand for Sunday's victory.
 
Up Next
• Colgate stays home next Sunday to take on Brown.
• The Bears are 1-12 after losing 4-1 at home Sunday to Holy Cross.
• Start time is noon, with the Patriot League Network carrying the action.