WEST POINT, N.Y. – Colgate had an answer all afternoon until No. 13 Army scored the final three goals to deny the Raiders' comeback in a 12-8 decision Saturday. 

The Raiders trailed 2-1 after one quarter, 4-3 at halftime, and 7-6 after three quarters but the continuous seesaw battle was upended when the Black Knights found the back of the net five times in the fourth.

Molly Krestinski scored two of Colgate's three first-half goals and her hat trick goal trimmed the deficit to 9-8 with exactly eight minutes remaining. Unfortunately from there the Black Knights struck three unanswered to seal the decision. 

Colgate trailed by as many as three (4-1) in the first half but Lucy Licata capped off a three-goal run early in the third quarter. Krestinski and Devon Maillet also contributed goals during the spurt to tie the game at 4-4. Licata netted her second of the term before Kendall Belanger cut the margin to 7-6 with a free-position goal.

The two teams alternated goals back and forth through the early stages of the fourth. Army first, then Kyra Lucey, then Army, then Krestinski to make it 9-8 at the 8:00 mark. Brigid Duffy scored two of the last three goals to help the Black Knights pull away for the 12-8 result. 

Krestinski's three goals paced the Raiders, followed by Licata with two. Lucey and Kait Henning added assists. Helena Morrison stood tall in the cage and finished the game with a career-best 13 saves.

Army, which improved to 9-0 on the season, held a 48-24 advantage in shots including 25-19 on goal. 

FROM THE SOURCE 
Head Coach Kathy Taylor

"I was so proud of the team today. We went toe to toe with a top-ranked, undefeated opponent and almost pulled off a huge upset. Helena [Morrison] was stellar in the cage and our defense gave us many stops. Unfortunately, we struggled a bit today finding the back of the cage and Army had the last run. Lots of great stuff to take away and learn from. We still have most of our Patriot League season ahead of us and look forward to continuing our growth and playing Bucknell University on Wednesday."

UP NEXT
Colgate (1-7, 0-2 Patriot) returns to Andy Kerr Stadium on Wednesday to host Bucknell at 5 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.