Jan. 9, 2007
Box Score
HAMILTON, N.Y. - Vanessa Van De Venter and Jessica Spicer (12 points) led a group of four Lafayette players in double-digits, but it was not enough for Lafayette to escape an unseasonably warm Colgate campus with a win, as the Raiders topped the Leopards 64-57 on Tuesday night at Cotterell Court.
Colgate junior Melanie Cargle was one short of a career high, leading all scorers with 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting. Gretchen Polinski (8) and Caitlin Gillard (7) combined for 15 of the Raiders' 35 boards, while the Leopards pulled down just 19.
The Raiders led by as many as 11 with just over five minutes remaining, answering a quick Lafayette run each time down the floor. A Val Gomez jumper with 37 seconds to play made it 63-57, but the Leopards could not come up with a defensive stop to stage a comeback from there.
Lafayette was rewarded after forcing Colgate into a shot clock violation, as Emily Garner's layup with 10 minutes to go cut the lead to 45-42. Colgate, however, countered with a four unanswered points to regain control. The Leopards cut the lead to four, 56-52, as sophomore Cristin Zavocki's steal led to a Garner layin with exactly four minutes to play.
An aggressive, trapping defense kept the Raiders in front for the entire opening half, but the largest lead was eight on two separate occasions for Colgate. Cargle exploded for 11 first-half points, which included a four-minute stretch of nine straight points midway through the action. Colgate shot 65 percent (15-of-23) before intermission.
Van De Venter then pumped some life into the Leopards with eight minutes to play, scoring seven straight points, including a three with the shot clock dwindling at the 4:40 mark. On the ensuing possession, Van De Venter saved a ball out of bounds and found senior guard Kara Stetler for the Leopards' second straight three, pulling Lafayette back within 28-24 with 4:07 remaining in the half.
The Raiders were able to keep the Leopards at arms length for the rest of the stanza and held a 33-27 advantage at the break.
Lafayette shot 39 percent (21-of-54) from the field and equaled a season-low with just 11 turnovers.
Garner and Gomez each finished with 11 points and four rebounds.
Lafayette will take the rest of the week to prepare for a Saturday afternoon battle at Navy. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. at Alumni Hall.
