OPENING TIP:
*The Leopards defeated Loyola on Saturday, 55-52, in overtime. Junior Drew Freeland led the Leopards with a team and season-high 19 points. Junior Natalie Kucowski recorded her 10th double double of the season with 10 points and 16 rebounds. They are now 2-2 to start off Patriot League action for the first time since the 2017-18 season.

*On Monday, junior Drew Freeland was named to the Patriot League Honorable Mention team.

*Lafayette currently leads the all-time series, 37-36. The last time the Leopards defeated the Raiders was Jan. 5, 2018 by a 63-48 final. Colgate has won the last three meetings. 

LEOPARDS LAST TIME OUT
A series of Greyhounds fouls proved to be what the Leopards needed Saturday afternoon as they defeated the Greyhounds, 55-52 in overtime for their second Patriot League victory.
 
Lafayette jumped out to a quick lead in the first quarter, going on a 13-point scoring run to put themselves up 15-2. Loyola started to close the gap at the end of the second quarter, bringing themselves within three, 29-26, heading into the locker room at the half.
 
The Greyhounds took control of the third quarter taking a 37-31 lead halfway through. But big baskets from Freeland and senior Tasha Vipond brought the Leopards back within one.
 
Loyola responded with a layup to put itself back up by three. Kucowski drew a foul, sending sophomore Nicole Johnson to the line. Johnson made both extra points to bring the Leopards back within one and then once again it would be a drawn foul by Kucowski, this time sending herself to the line to shoot two, making both.
 
The fourth quarter saw the game tied three times with neither team being able to break the 50-50 tie at the end of regulation, sending the Leopards into their third overtime game this season.
 
The Greyhounds got the first basket but a series of fouls would prove costly for them as both Kucowski and senior Alexis Santarelli drew fouls and made enough of their extra points to put the Leopards up by three, giving them the overtime victory.
 
SCOUTING THE RAIDERS
Led by fourth year head coach Bill Clearly, the Raiders come into Wednesday mornings game with an 11-4 overall and 3-1 Patriot League record.
 
The Raiders return their leading scorer and rebounder in junior Rachel Thompson. Thompson was also named the league player of the week this week for the second time this season after her triple-double (20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists) on Sunday against Navy. She is currently leading the team averaging 17.1 points per game, 7.9 rebounds per game, 5.5 assists per game and 2.7 steals per game.
 
THE LAST MEETING
The last time these two squads saw each other was last season on March 6, 2019 to close out regular season play.
 
Lafayette got out to a fast start, making its most 3-pointers in the first with five long balls led by Olivia Martino's pair of triples.
 
The Maroon and White stopped the bleeding and closed the half on a 7-0 run to head into the break as Natalie Kucowski knocked down a jumper, Nia Holland came in to score her first points of the season on a pair of free throws, and Kucowski followed with two foul shots of her own.
 
Midway through the third, the Leopards went on another 7-0 run that was quickly answered by a 17-0 Colgate run that spanned the final minutes of the third and the first few of the fourth to go up 13 points with nine minutes to play. Lafayette answered with an 11-0 scoring spurt that cut the Raider lead to just three with 2:41 left to play.
 
Colgate used the final two minutes to pad its free throw shooting numbers, going 10-of-12 from the foul line in the game and 5-of-6 in crunch time.
 
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOK
Junior Natalie Kucowski's 16 rebounds on Saturday against Loyola now puts her career rebounding total at 844. She is now tied for second all-time in the Lafayette record book with Emily Homan and needs 10 more to become Lafayette's all-time leading rebounder.
 
Her five blocks on Saturday brings her career block total to 153 putting her eight away from moving into third all-time.
 
Her 10 points on Saturday brings her career points total to 975, 25 away from recording her 1,000 career point. Kucowki's 10 points on Saturday also moved her into the top-20 in the Lafayette record books for all-time points. She sits five points away from moving into 19th all-time. Once she hits the 1,000 point mark, she will be the 19th Lafayette Women's Basketball player to achieve the milestone.
 
THE LAST TIME
On Saturday, senior Alexis Santarelli's six steals marked the first time since 2016 that a Lafayette Women's Basketball player recorded five or more steals in a game. The last time this mark was met was by Jamie O'Hara on March 2, 2016 when she recorded nine against Bucknell.
 
BACK AT THE TOP
Junior Natalie Kucowski is back at the top of the national leaderboards. She is once again leading the nation in rebounds per game (13.7) and remains first in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (10.1). She is now second in the nation in rebounds (192.0) and fifth in double doubles (10.0).