HAMILTON — A new era of Colgate women's lacrosse begins on Friday as the Raiders will open their 2025 season against Monmouth.

New head coach Alyssa Guido will take charge of her first game at the helm alongside her two new assistants, Abby Rehfuss and Nicole Perroni. 

The Raiders will look to improve upon their sixth place Patriot League finish with a mixture of returning talent and eager newcomers.

Coach Guido added, "This will be chapter 1 of Colgate women's lacrosse growth. It won't be perfect but we plan on ensuring fun and success throughout the season and I cannot wait to see the product this team puts out there."

RETURNING TALENT
Colgate returns nine of its 12 starters from last season, including all four top goalscorers.

Lucy Licata returns for her senior campaign after netting a team-high 32 goals last season. Licata garnered Patriot League Second Team honors last season and earned Preseason All-League honors this year. The senior also logged 86 draw controls last season, the second most all-time in a season for Colgate women's lacrosse.

Caroline Panzirer will look to continue her offensive threat this season after posting 42 points last season, second most among the Raiders. Panzirer started all 17 games for Colgate and registered a point in all but one game over the course of the season.

Nelle Kniffin comes back for her fourth season at Colgate after leading the team with 15 caused turnovers. Kniffin ranked fifth in the conference last year averaging 1.36 caused turnovers per game. The senior picked up 11 ground balls and added six draw controls last year and will look to be a leader on the Raiders defensive unit this season.

Meg Cole led all field players with 16 ground balls last season, only behind goalkeeper Lauren Solis for most on the team. Cole returns for her third year with the Raiders after starting all 17 games last season, earning her first career point with an assist against Boston University (4/17/24). 

Kait Henning rounds out the five captains for the Raiders this season. Henning scored 22 goals last season and added six assists. The senior logged eight multi-goal games last season including two hat tricks (UAlbany, 3/2/24) & American, 3/23/24).

NEWCOMERS
Colgate enters the 2025 season with 11 new additions to the team. The first years hail from seven different states and bring a wealth of experience and talent from the high school level.

Amongst the newcomers there are 10 first years and one transfer. Keira Rooney joins the Raiders after one season with the Florida Gators. Rooney was a four-time Under Armour All-American in high school and redshirted her first season with the Gators.

Lucy Lederman joins the Raiders after four years as a letterwinner at Brighton High School where she scored 101 goals and added 22 assists.

SCHEDULE OUTLOOK
Following Friday's contest, Colgate will travel to Binghamton, N.Y. to take on Binghamton on Wednesday, Feb. 12.
 
The Raiders will play eight games at Andy Kerr including four non-conference and four Patriot League contests. Colgate will take on Cornell (2/22), Le Moyne (2/26), and Siena (3/18) at home. The Raiders open league play on the road against Holy Cross on March 8 before heading to Annapolis to take on Navy on March 15. Colgate's first home Patriot League game will be against Loyola (3/22) which will be the first of a three-game homestand. After Loyola, Colgate will welcome American on March 29 and then Bucknell April 5.