WORCESTER, Mass. – Behind a pair of hat tricks, the Colgate women's lacrosse program earned its first Patriot League victory of the season as it downed Holy Cross 13-10 on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Worcester.
 
Although Holy Cross got on the board first, it was Claudia Pilcher's first career goal that tied the game up at 1-1. Minutes later, Tara Atkinson lifted Colgate to its first lead of the day with a wraparound chance at the net. Colgate's four-goal run through the first half was halted as the Crusaders narrowed the Raiders lead to 4-2 by capitalizing on a free position shot midway through the half but the visiting team continued to persist.
 
It was goalie Sam Croston keeping Colgate ahead as Holy Cross outshot the Raiders 8-6 midway through the half, but the junior captain made seven saves through the 30:00 denying the Crusaders efforts at a comeback.
 
Colgate continued its 5-1 scoring run as Lindsay West earned her 11th of the year, while Danielle Van Calcar extended the Raiders run early in the second half. Minutes later, West became the first of four players to mark a multi-goal game as she scooped up a second tally with a wide angle shot for a 7-2 advantage.
 
The Raiders offensive rampage was extended by Noelle Patterson's second of the day for an 8-1 scoring run until midway through the second half. Holy Cross attempted to push back with a trio of goals to narrow Colgate's lead to 9-6, but it was Annelise Kotz score that put Colgate back on an offensive streak and up 10-6 on the scoreboard.
 
As the clock wound down on regulation, Jacklyn Hooey continued the Colgate scoring with a low shot through the goalies back door and increased the Raiders' lead to 12-7 in the final minutes. Although Holy Cross tallied back-to-back goals with 5:27 remaining, Colgate's defense persevered to seal the 13-10 victory finalized by Atkinson's hat trick goal.
 
STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
• After notching her first career goal with Colgate's opening tally, freshman Claudia Pilcher completed the first hat trick of her collegiate career by adding a pair of goals in the second half.
• Earning her first hat trick of the season, senior Tara Atkinson begins a two-game scoring streak with her third multi-goal game of the year. For her hat trick, Atkinson tallied a season-high of five shots on goal and earned a career-high of seven total points by three goals and four assists.
• For her sixth multi-goal game of the season, junior Noelle Patterson added two to the score sheet for her team-leading 17 goals. Patterson has scored a goal in all nine games this season and tops the team with Atkinson at 21 points.
• Scoring for the fifth straight game for a total of 12 on the season was junior Lindsay West. West has multi-goal games in back-to-back games and in three of the last four matchups.
• Freshman Jacklyn Hooey picked up her sixth of the season and first goal since scoring at Wagner (March 3). On the season, Hooey's seven points tops the freshman class.
• With her second goal in the last three games, sophomore Danielle Van Calcar earned a multi-point day with an assist on Atkinson's first of three goals. Van Calcar also led the squad by winning seven of the team's 10 draw controls on the day.
• Sophomore Annelise Kotz scored for the third straight game for seven goals on the year.
• In the circle, junior goalie Samantha Croston made 14 stops. The saves are just one shy of her season-high of 15 at Wagner (March 3).
• Colgate recovered 21 ground balls to Holy Cross' 16 on the day, and went 18-20 on its attempted clears.
• With its 13 goals, the Raiders set a new offensive high on the year, and snapped a five-game losing streak for its first league win of the year.
 
THE BOTTOM LINE
• Colgate 13, Holy Cross 10
 
RECORD UPDATES
• Colgate holds a 3-6 record, and a 1-1 mark in Patriot League action.
• Holy Cross is 3-6 overall on the season, and is 0-2 in Patriot League play.

COACH BEVILLE'S TAKE
"For the first time in a while, we played a full 60 minutes today and executed on the offensive end. It's always great to have seven different players record a point. Tara Atkinson stepped up big with seven points and freshman Claudia Pilcher went for a hat trick for her first three collegiate goals. Samantha Croston also had a tremendous day in cage for us with 14 saves. We look forward to a rest day tomorrow after a long week of practice then back to Boston for a mid-week Patriot League game."
 
UP NEXT
Colgate continues Patriot League action on Wednesday, March 27 as it travels to take on the Terriers of Boston University. The Raiders then return for Senior Day against Bucknell on Saturday, March 30 for a 1 p.m. first draw.
 
FOLLOW THE RAIDERS
For more information on the Colgate women's lacrosse program, follow the Raiders on Twitter @ColgateWLax and on Instagram at ColgateWLax.