HAMILTON – American rode a first-quarter springboard to its sixth win in seven games, this one a 77-55 triumph over Colgate here Tuesday afternoon.
 
The Eagles, who took down Penn State and Bucknell in their two previous outings, built a 27-11 lead after 10 minutes thanks to 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point distance. American arrived at Cotterell Court shooting just 30.2 percent from downtown, but the Eagles swished a season-high 11 treys and won for the 23rd straight time over Colgate.
 
The Raiders narrowed a 21-point American lead in the second quarter to 41-26 by halftime, and then pulled within 46-36 with 5:26 showing in the third quarter to force an American timeout.
 
But the Eagles responded with a 14-6 run over the remainder of the period and led 60-42 at the end of three. Five straight American points to begin the fourth quarter pushed the lead into the 20s, and there it remained through the final buzzer.
 
Chelsey Koren and Haley Greer tallied nine points apiece to lead the Raiders in the scoring column. Tori Pozsonyi added eight and Mylah Chandler seven. Tegan Graham was the team rebounding leader with seven to match her career high.
 
Colgate was playing its first game since Rachel Thompson suffered a lower body injury Friday against Holy Cross. Thompson, who is second on the team in both scoring and rebounding and the team-leader in steals, is out indefinitely.
 
Bottom Line
American 77, Colgate 55
 
Won-Lost Records
• Colgate dropped to 4-9 overall and 0-2 in the Patriot League.
• American is now 9-4 and 2-0.
 
Facts & Figures
• The Raiders were a season-best 79.3 percent from the foul line, making 23-of-29.
• Chandler was a perfect 5-of-5 at the stripe and Pozsonyi 6-of-8.
• Pozsonyi's eight points were a personal best against a Patriot League game.
• She helped lead the Raiders to a 24-14 scoring edge in bench points.
• Colgate finished with season shooting lows of 28.8 percent overall and 10.5 percent from 3-point distance.
• American's Cecily Carl led all scorers with 18 points, while Elina Koskimies added 17 thanks to 5-of-6 shooting from 3-point distance. Emily Kinneston scored 14 to go with eight assists and four steals.
• The Eagles played to billing and committed a season-low five turnovers. They lead the Patriot League with an average of 13.1 per game.
• Colgate committed 16 turnovers. That's slightly below average for the Raiders but they still were outscored in points-off-turnovers by a 21-1 margin.
• American has posted the same starting five in all 13 games this season.
 
Gate Grab Bag
• Attendance at Cotterell Court was 211.
 
Up Next
• Colgate hits the road for a combined road trip to Lafayette and Navy.
• The Leopards are 4-7 overall and 0-1 in the Patriot League heading into Tuesday night's game at Holy Cross.
• Tipoff Friday from Easton is 7 p.m., with the Patriot League Network and WKXZ-FM carrying all the action.