WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Colgate volleyball program put up a fight against the defending Patriot League Champion as they claimed the first set Saturday evening before American responded with three narrow set wins for a 3-1 final. Although it featured freshman Julia Kurowski's fourth double-double of the season and successful challenges from the Colgate bench, the match resulted in American remaining undefeated in Patriot League play this season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – 3-1 LOSS AT AMERICAN
The Raiders were off in a strong opening set where they hit .300 as a team. And once they fell in the groove of a 5-0 scoring run, it had American using its first timeout midway through the first as the Raiders led 14-10. Once junior Alex Stein notched her fourth kill of the night, Colgate claimed the game to gain a 1-0 lead on the road.

The challenges continued though, as American battled back after not sacrificing a set to the Raiders on their home court since 2012. The Eagles turned the tables and built a 15-10 lead in the second set, and although it was peppered with a pair of Stein aces, the match was all square as American took the game.

In a set that featured nine tie scores, the Raiders had already faced eight as they held a narrow 15-14 lead midway through the second game. Colgate's offense was back to striking strong numbers as they were hitting .333 in the third with a lead of 18-15 before American called a timeout. Coming out of the team meeting, American pulled through with a late 7-1 run to regain the lead and take the set by a 25-22 mark.

A 4-0 start looked to be fueling the Raiders offense in the fourth set, but American opted to call another timeout halting Colgate's three-point run as they inched back at the 15-12 marker. In the must-win fourth set, the Raiders hit a streak that overcame a six-point deficit, narrowing American's lead to 21-19. When all looked dismal with an American win at match point, Colgate's challenge of the match point was successful reversing the call and keeping the conference foes in action. Although the Raiders added another tally to the scoreboard, American was able to close out the narrow win for the match victory by a 25-23 final.
 
STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
• By 40 assists and 11 digs, freshman Julia Kurowski notched her fourth double-double of the season, and first since at Army West Point (Sept. 22).
• Senior Jaelah Hutchison led the Raiders with a team-leading 13 kills while hitting .257, in addition to a high of four total blocks of the Eagles attacks. The 13 kills are just one shy of the San Francisco, California native's season high of 14 against Chicago State (Aug. 24).
• Highlighting play at the line, junior Alex Stein matched her career-high of four service aces leading the Raiders on its way to a team total of seven on the night. Another consistent presence on the court, Stein also marked her eighth double-digit kill match of the season with 12 kills in addition to eight digs.
• Three different Raiders marked double-digit digs, including sophomore Bridget Kolsky (16) and senior Katie Stansbury (17). A native of Strongsville, Ohio, Stansbury's team-leading 17 digs are a season-high for the senior and are the most since her 21-dig performance in the NIVC First Round against Towson (Nov. 30, 2017).
• The pair of conference foes battled through a total of 20 tie scores and 10 lead changes over the course of the four sets.
• With its 25-21 win in the opening set, Colgate claimed its first set win on the road at American since Nov. 9, 2012.
  
THE BOTTOM LINE
• American 3, Colgate 1 (21-25, 25-20, 25-22, 25-23)
 
RECORD UPDATES
• Colgate falls to 8-10 on the season, and holds a 3-3 mark in Patriot League play.
• American improves to 11-9 overall, with an undefeated 6-0 record in conference action.
 
COACH BAKER'S TAKE
"We had our chances today against an always strong American team. Our defensive effort was much better than a majority of the season.
 
"We've had a lot of road matches and we need to be better on the road if we want to win a championship. There are still 10 matches left and we are home a lot in the second half. It's about recovery and refocusing for next weekend."
 
UP NEXT
The Raiders return home next weekend as they host Lehigh on Friday. The Patriot League matchup is slated for a 7 p.m. first serve from Cotterell Court.
 
FOLLOW THE RAIDERS
For more information on the Colgate volleyball program, follow the Raiders on Twitter @ColgateVB and on Instagram at Colgate_VB.