HAMILTON — After an hour-and-a-half rain delay, the patience paid off as Colgate Softball took the first two games of a three-game series against Holy Cross, 8-1 and 6-1 on Saturday afternoon at Eaton Street Softball Complex. The Raiders celebrated their six seniors prior to the doubleheader. 

Colgate racked up 18 hits and 14 runs across the two games, led by Analisa Raffaelli who was 4-for-4 in Game 2 with two RBIs and a run scored. Quinn Livesay had three hits including a home run, while Alexis Romero and Lily Haluska each homered as well. Maya Servedio and Mikala Ham both went the distance in the circle, combining for 10 strikeouts, one earned run, and a pair of victories to help lead Colgate to the doubleheader sweep.

COACH LAMISON-MYERS' COMMENTS

"Two complete games from Maya and Mikala were huge. I couldn't be more proud of the both of them. Our seniors were excellent today on both sides of the ball. The weather could have thrown us off but it didn't. We look forward to tomorrow." 

Game 1 | Colgate 8, Holy Cross 1

• Romero put the Raiders on the board first and she didn't waste any time, cranking the first pitch she saw over the wall in left-center for her third home run of the season. 
• Livesay joined the senior party with another solo shot, this time to straightaway center to double Colgate's lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the third inning. 
• Mia Cascio stretched Colgate's margin in the bottom of the fifth. She roped a double off the wall in right field, scoring Lily Haluska all the way from first. Cascio forced an errant throw to third and came around to score to stretch the Raider lead to 5-1 through five innings.
• Jillian Herbst and Claire Whalen put on a double steal in the sixth, and Whalen slid under the tag at home to extend Colgate's lead to 6-1. Haluska finished off the scoring with a two-run blast over everything in the sixth, sealing the 8-1 victory. 

Game 2 | Colgate 6, Holy Cross 1

• Holy Cross wasted no time jumping on the board in Game 2. Ali Sniegocki took the first pitch of the contest over the wall for the Crusaders' first lead of the series, 1-0. 
• The Raiders broke through in the bottom of the third when Raffaelli roped an RBI single through the right side, scoring Herbst and drawing the game even at 1-1. 
• Both pitchers settled in and the game remained 1-1 until Colgate posted two runs on the strength of two hits and three straight walks in the bottom of the fifth. 
• Amanda DeSantis worked a bases-loaded walk and then the very next batter, Whalen, beat an infield single to give the Raiders a 3-1 advantage through five innings. 
• Raffaelli continued her hot hitting in the sixth, delivering her fourth hit of the game with an RBI single to extend Colgate's lead to 4-1. The Raiders capitalized on a Holy Cross miscue to add two more in the frame, capped off by an RBI single from DeSantis who made it 6-1.
• Ham finished her complete game with a scoreless seventh to finish off the sweep.

UP NEXT
Colgate and Holy Cross wrap up their three-game series Sunday afternoon with first pitch set for noon from Eaton Street Field.