HAMILTON – Colgate's Patriot League supremacy took another stride on Sunday as the Raiders fended off Navy 3-2 in a five-set thriller to win their second consecutive conference championship.
With the win, Colgate claims its seventh all-time Patriot League championship, including its second in a row, and Ryan Baker becomes the first head coach in program history to win three conference tournament titles.
Harper Snyder, named the Patriot League Tournament Most Valuable Player, tallied 10 kills and seven blocks to go with a .286 hitting percentage. Julia Kurowski posted a double-double (15 kills, 23 assists, eight digs, five block assists) and hit .443. Kurowski and Abby Shadwick tied for the team lead in kills with 15, while Taylor Cigna registered a team-high 19 digs.
Colgate hit .346 overall and held Navy to a .181 clip. The Raiders finished with 24 blocks, including 15 combined from Snyder (6), Kurowski (5), and Sophie Thompson (4). Cigna and Sydney Jones joined Snyder on the 2022 Patriot League All-Tournament Team.
Set 1: Colgate 25, Navy 20
Early runs set the stage for the first set. Kurowski registered two kills and Snyder's dominance at the top of the tape pushed the Raiders in front 7-1. Navy countered with a 6-1 spurt and tied the set at 11-11 on a service ace by Averi Miller. Colgate answered with five consecutive points to claim the lead for good. Snyder finished the frame with three block assists and Sydney Jones capped off the 25-20 set with a perfect service ace inside the back line.
Set 2: Colgate 25, Navy 10
Colgate posted a remarkable .591 hitting percentage and held Navy to -0.42 with a dominant second set from start to finish. The Raiders started fast and finished strong, building a 5-0 lead on the heels of a kill by Shadwick. Pinpoint accuracy from Cigna on a service ace ran Colgate's lead to double digits and the Raiders kept the pedal down. Kills from Thompson and Gillian Hauschild helped Colgate seal the second set 25-10.
Set 3: Navy 28, Colgate 26
Navy raced out to the early 3-0 lead behind a pair of service aces from Jamie Llewellyn. Two attack errors helped the Raiders tie it at 3s and then neither team led by more than two points until the late stages. Both teams traded shots back and forth. Back-to-back kills from Thompson and Carlie Rzeszotarski gave Colgate the upper hand 20-19 but the set advanced to extras. The Raiders had two chances at match point before Navy put it away 28-26 on an attack error.
Set 4: Navy 25, Colgate 22
A similar script in Set 4 saw the two teams trading shots back and forth. Navy shifted the momentum after winning a challenge on a service ace by Celie Feighery and built a 17-13 advantage. The Raiders closed the gap on multiple occasions, including 23-22, but the Mids never relinquished the lead and won their second straight set to force a fifth frame.
Set 5: Colgate 15, Navy 9
Colgate dominated the fifth and final frame, and the crowd roared louder with each point. Kurowski and Shadwick each had two kills and the Raiders built a 7-2 advantage. Navy battled back within 12-9 but the Raiders scored the final three points. Kills from Snyder and Shadwick preceded an attack error to seal the victory and the championship, 15-9.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Ryan Baker
"We've been working hard at this for a long time. American set the standard for what we've always wanted from our program and we've taken a big turn in a positive direction over the last four years. I give a lot of credit to my former players, coaches, the administration, and the community. The support behind this program showed out again tonight.
"We had everything going our way in the first two sets. Navy made a couple of plays in the third set and then momentum changed like volleyball always does. The fifth set was the cleanest set we could play. Everything was executed at the highest level – these players are pretty special."
UP NEXT
Colgate (24-5, 14-2 PL) now awaits its opponent and destination for the 2022 NCAA women's volleyball championship, which will be determined during the selection show at 7:30 p.m. ET next Sunday, Nov. 27 on ESPNU. First- and second-round games are Dec. 1-2 or 2-3.
