EASTON, Pa. – Colgate is back in the Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Tournament.
 
The Raiders did their part Friday night with a convincing 17-9 victory at Lafayette, boosted by hat tricks from Griffin Brown, Duncan Hoskinson and Chase Wittich. They then received the right combination of results across the conference to walk out of Fisher Stadium holding a No. 5 seed.
 
That sets up a Tuesday night showdown back in the valley against fourth-seeded Lehigh.
 
Colgate spotted the Leopards a 3-1 first-quarter lead before storming back with six goals in each of middle two quarters. The second period was a 6-0 whitewash, making it 7-3 Raiders at intermission.
 
Colgate was in front 13-7 headed to the fourth and coasted home.
 
Brown's hat trick was his fourth of the season and boosted his team-leading goals total to 32. Hoskinson posted his third hat trick this year and has 16 goals, while Wittich contributed his second hat trick to climb to 15 goals.
 
Sam Cleveland for the second game in a row led the Raiders in points, finishing with two goals and three assists. Cleveland with 29 now has the sixth-best assist season total in program history. He's within range of Brian Kopp's record of 34 assists set way back in 1985.
 
Colgate was a perfect 12-of-12 on clears and finished with a season-low six turnovers.
 
Bottom Line
Colgate 17, Lafayette 9
 
Won-Lost Records
• Colgate improved to 7-6 overall and finished 3-5 in the Patriot League.
• Lafayette wrapped its season at 3-12 and 0-8.
 
Raider Facts & Figures
• The Raiders were picked seventh in the preseason by the Patriot League coaches and SIDs.
• This is Colgate's first postseason appearance since the Raiders won the 2015 championship and earned a berth in the NCAA tournament.
• Colgate that year was the No. 2 seed after sharing the regular-season title with Navy.
• Colgate's 7-0 flurry in the middle two quarters was its best scoring run since a seven-goal outbreak March 17 against Canisius.
• The 17 goals were Colgate's highest output since that 18-5 win over the Golden Griffins.
• The Raiders were 4-of-6 in extra-man situations. All three of Brown's goals were man-up, and Mike Hawkins added the fourth.
• Matt Donovan (2 assists) and Will Blumenberg (7 ground balls) matched personal career highs. They also scored one goal apiece.
• Cleveland now has 107 career points, with 46 goals and 61 assists.
 
From the Source
• Colgate head coach Mike Murphy: (On the game) "We started a little slow on the offensive side of the ball but responded well. Coach Abbott did an unbelievable job with our guys, and to come out in that second quarter the way we did and carry that through to the third quarter was impressive.
 
"Connor Mullen was excellent in the cage tonight. They got some inside looks but he really took some off the board with his saves. Collin Orr gave us a good chance to slant the field in our direction with his faceoff wins.
 
"Both lines of midfielders did a really nice job of managing the game within the game and taking smart shots. After Coach Abbott got them together at the end of that first quarter, we just dodged more potently and shot with more confidence.
 
"Sam Cleveland played really well in this game. He distributed the ball and got himself a couple of goals.
 
"We bounced back really well from a very disappointing loss last Saturday. One of the things we talk about is being resilient. We were resilient from last weekend and resilient tonight from the first quarter."
 
(On earning a tourney bid) "Anytime you lose the quality of player like Anthony Abbadessa along with some of the other setbacks we've had, it hurts you. But we've had guys like Chase Wittich step up. He's really the leader of that offensive group.
 
(On facing Lehigh) "They are another very potent offense with three unbelievable attackmen down there. It will be another battle at the faceoff-X, and we've got to shore up some things defensively.
 
"That was a game early in the season that was 7-7 going to the fourth quarter. We were a little unsure of ourselves in the goal back then, but I like the way Mullen played tonight. If he can carry that over, it will give us a shooter's shot."
 
Up Next
• Colgate travels to Lehigh for the Patriot League tournament quarterfinals.
• The Mountain Hawks are 8-6 overall and finished 5-3 in the Patriot League after Friday's 14-7 loss at Bucknell.
• Faceoff from Bethlehem is 7 p.m., with the Patriot League Network carrying all the action.
• Lehigh defeated Colgate 10-7 back on March 3 in Bethlehem.