HAMILTON – The four-team Patriot League volleyball tournament returns to Cotterell Court for the fifth consecutive year and pits top-seeded Colgate with sixth-seeded Lehigh in semifinal action Friday night at 5:30 p.m. 

Colgate swept the regular-season series against Lehigh, winning six of seven total sets in the head-to-head matchups including a 3-0 sweep in the final home match of the regular season on Nov. 9. Milan Bayless led the team with 15 kills and a .500 hitting clip in the recent sweep. 

SETTING THE SCENE
Top-seeded Colgate opens its 2024 Patriot League tournament action against sixth-seeded Lehigh on Friday at 5:30 p.m., with a trip to the Patriot League championship on the line. The Raiders are seeking their fifth consecutive PL championship match appearance and fourth consecutive tournament title. Lehigh is looking for its first tournament crown since 1997 and first appearance in the title game since 2014. 

SERIES HISTORY
Colgate is 53-19 all-time against Lehigh in the series that began in 1980. The Raiders have won 15 consecutive head-to-head matches since 2017. The Raiders swept this year's regular-season series, first taking a 3-1 victory in Bethlehem on the league-opening weekend (Sept. 21) before sweeping the Mountain Hawks in their final home game of the regular season (Nov. 9). 

BAYLESS NAMED PATRIOT LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Milan Bayless becomes Colgate's sixth different player to earn the Patriot League's Player of the Year and the first since Julia Kurowski earned the top honor in 2022. She is the first sophomore to land the award since American's Aleksandra Kazala was named POY in 2016. The La Mesa, Calif., native ranked fourth in the Patriot League averaging 3.34 kills per set. In 27 matches played she led the team with 311 kills to go along with a .260 hitting percentage. Bayless had 20 matches with double-digit kills and three double-doubles.

ALL-LEAGUE RAIDERS
Milan Bayless headlined Colgate's four All-Patriot League honorees. She was joined on the All-League First Team by senior Abby Shadwick, while senior setter Sydney Jones and first-year right side hitter Tiana Owens garnered Second Team notice. Colgate's four honorees were the second most of any team in the PL.

SHADWICK RACKING UP THE HONORS
Senior outside hitter Abby Shadwick will go down as one of the most decorated players in Colgate Volleyball history. She is a three-time Patriot League champion, three-time Academic All-Patriot League selection, and three-time All-Patriot League First Team honoree. On Wednesday, she was named the Patriot League ScholarAthlete of the Year for the second year in a row - becoming Colgate's first-ever two-time top league scholar. 

WILD FINALE IN LEWISBURG
Colgate came back to reverse sweep Bucknell 3-2 and clinch the Patriot League regular season championship in the final game of the regular season last Saturday, Nov. 16. The Raiders, down 2-0 in the match, trailed 1912 in Set 3 and were also behind 22-18 before finding another gear. Even trailing 14-11 in the fifth and final set, Abby Shadwick scored the final six points for Colgate. She landed five consecutive kills before inching a service ace just over the top of the tape to secure Colgate's fourth straight regular season title.

HOME SWEET HOME
Colgate holds a remarkable 35-4 record at Cotterell Court dating back to the start of the 2022 season. The Raiders were 12-0 at home in 2022, followed by a 13-1 home record last season. Colgate is 10-3 at home this season which includes an unblemished 8-0 record in Hamilton during the Patriot League slate. Five of those eight contests have come via sweep, most recently the 3-0 sweep over Lehigh (Nov. 9).

PATRIOT LEAGUE TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
The Patriot League Women's Volleyball Championship will be televised on ESPN+ with Jon Gross and Patriot League Multimedia Journalist Paige Messier providing the call. For more information, visit the 2024 Patriot League Volleyball Championship page by clicking here.

2024 Patriot League Volleyball Championship Schedule

Quarterfinal Round – Tuesday, Nov. 19
No. 6 Lehigh 3, No. 3 American 2
No. 4 Army West Point 3, No 5. Loyola Maryland 0

Semifinal Round – Friday, Nov. 22
No. 4 Army West Point vs. No. 2 Bucknell | 2:30 p.m. | ESPN+ | STATS
No. 6 Lehigh at No. 1 Colgate | 5:30 p.m. | ESPN+ | STATS

Championship Match - Sunday, Nov. 24
Winner of Semifinal 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal 2 | 2 p.m. | ESPN+ | STATS