HAMILTON - Ari Bezanson's brace on Senior Night helped the Raiders overcome a late Lafayette equalizer and secure all three points on Saturday at Beyer-Small '76 Field.

Bezanson now has 14 goals on the season which ranks first in the Patriot League and fourth in the nation. Bezanson also extended her goal streak to six consecutive games dating back to Sept. 25. The junior has scored nine goals in that span.

With the victory Colgate now sits in the top three in the conference with 12 points through seven matches with two remaining.

COACH HOKANSON'S COMMENTS

"I mean, what a true late October Patriot League game. Two very competitive teams in a real dogfight. I can't say enough about our group and their grit tonight. It was a true team effort and win. Have to give Ari a ton of credit. To have all of the attention that she garners going into games and still find a way to score two goals says so much about her quality. I felt as though the defensive effort from our entire team was unbelievably resilient, even when moments of the game weren't necessarily going our way. Tons of credit to Lafayette, they are a very difficult team to break down and made us work for absolutely everything tonight. This one is for our senior class who have given their all to this program and deserved this win in their honor."

SENIOR, JORDAN JUETTEN'S COMMENTS

"I just love this team so much and I couldn't do it without them. This team is phenomenal, it means so much to me and these people made us feel so special on Senior Night. We work so hard and we deserve this win and I am so proud of everyone."

HOW IT HAPPENED

Moments after Lafayette leveled the game at one with 12 minutes left, Jordan Juetten played a through ball into the path of Ari Bezanson. Bezanson took the ball inside on her left foot and ripped it into the right corner putting Colgate back in front.

The middle of the second half was played between the boxes with both defenses preventing any quality opportunities in front of goal.

Opening the second half Colgate soaked up some pressure from Lafayette but still prevented any shots on target in the first 15 minutes.

Bezanson received the ball from Juetten in the middle of the field. Bezanson took two dribbles and fired from 20 yards away into the top left corner giving the Raiders a 1-0 lead just 12 minutes into the match.

Colgate got another great chance 20 minutes into the first half. After Ellie Stokes used her pace to get into the attacking third she laced a cross into the Lafayette six-yard box finding the foot of Sophie Wand who swung at it, but the Leopards' goalkeeper made the save.

The Raiders defense held the Lafayette attack to five shots the entire match while Colgate held a 6-2 shots on goal advantage.

UP NEXT
The Raiders (5-8-3, 3-2-2) look to their last home game of the regular season on Saturday, Oct. 26. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. at Beyer-Small '76 Field.