Colgate Arrives On Saturday

It’ll be homecoming at Lafayette this week end and what better time to have a Patriot League matchup at home. Last year, Raiders made a spirited and motivated effort against the Leopards as they jumped off to a 2-0 lead. The final winning goal was not delivered by Lafayette until the fourth quarter which ended in a 5-4 win for Lafayette. This game is just as important this year for both teams. It falls into to the category of a must win game.

The Raiders are 2-6 and Lafayette is 3-5 but the internals are more revealing. The most revealing are the respective RPI’s and SOS’s.  Lafayette’s RPI is 31 and Strength of Schedule is 14 out of 78 teams. Conversely Colgate has an RPI of 68 out 78 and a SOS of 64.

Lafayette played their last game at Cornell on Monday and Colgate had their last game on  Sunday with Syracuse…both were losses. More importantly Colgate lost to PL rival Lehigh 2-1 and Lafayette beat Holy Cross on 8-0 last Saturday.  I am not arguing to forget the current records, but these PL games have an added importance in that it can provide a second chance for a championship!! In terms of specifics, Colgate has scored 14 goals 6 of which were scored by 3 each from Taylor Cassmass and Nichole Salamone. Lafayette has scored 17 goals 4 from Sam DiMaio and 3 from Felicitas Hannes. Save percentage for Colgate is 67 percent and Lafayette is 70 percent.

Colgate is certainly under the gun, but a loss for Lafayette would be disappointing and have implications for chances to get into the playoffs. Colgate proved last year it can be competitive, but Lafayette should be well prepared, rested and motivated. However, Lafayette should not be overconfident…this is an important game. Disappointingly, it will not be televised. I hope we see a “sea” of Leopard fans in their seats!!!