HAMILTON — Colgate heads to Penn State to take on the Nittany Lions in the first round of the NCAA tournament Saturday at 5 p.m.
“It is going to be a great battle on Saturday. Our guys are rested and are ready. We are really excited about re-seeing this team from the beginning of the year and ensuring we are prepared,” said head coach Matt Karweck during his press conference on Wednesday.
The Raiders won the Patriot League Championship with a 17-10 win over Boston University last Sunday to earn an automatic bid to the tournament. Colgate defeated top-seeded Army West Point 16-13 last Friday to reach the title game after beating Lehigh 14-10 in the quarterfinals on April 29.
The Raiders are making their fourth overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and their first since 2015. Penn State makes its third consecutive trip to the tournament, earning an at-large bid after falling in the Big Ten quarterfinals to Maryland.
Colgate has played PSU the last two years during the regular season. The Raiders fell 14-9 to Penn State in their season opener on Feb. 1. Colgate shocked the then No. 4 ranked Nittany Lions 13-12 to open the 2024 campaign after Liam Connor scored his first career goal with four seconds remaining.
Matt LaCombe was named Patriot League Tournament MVP after stopping a career-high and Patriot League Tournament record 24 shots against Army in the semifinals, then making 10 saves against the Terriers in the championships. The senior has logged 10-plus saves in four straight contests.
L. Connor, Hunter Drouin, and Rory Connor joined LaCombe on the All-Tournament Team. L. Connor recorded a career-best eight points, tying his career-high in assists (5) in the semifinals. He then tied his career high in goals (4) in the championship.
Drouin tallied a team-best six points (4G, 2A) in the title game, after posting four points (3G, 1A) in the semifinals. He has logged a point in 34 straight games since the 2023 season. R. Connor has logged five-plus points in four of the previous five contests, including a seven-point performance (3G, 4A) and a five-point game (3G, 2A) last weekend.
Jack Turner has found the back of the net a team-best 52 times this season. He recorded a hat trick in all three Patriot League Tournament games last week and has registered 11 games with three-plus goals this season.
The Raiders sit fourth nationally in caused turnovers per game (11.24). John Carrabine has recorded a team-best 31 caused turnovers and logged three in the win over the Terriers Sunday.
Sam Erickson has posted 24 caused turnovers and has six games with multiple CTs. Quinn Fitzsimmons has caused 22 turnovers, including two against the Terriers on Sunday.
Colgate ranks second in the nation in ground balls per game, averaging 36.24. Carrabine leads the squad with 74 after scooping up a combined 16 in the three Patriot League Tournament games last week. Max Yates sits behind him (73) and has collected four ground balls in four straight contests.
Kyle Rummel has posted 10 or more face-off wins in four straight games after registering a career-best total against Boston University, going 17-for-29. The sophomore also scooped up a career-high 11 ground balls in the title game, and sits third on the squad with 60.
The winner of Saturday’s contest will play the winner of Notre Dame vs. Ohio State the following weekend in Annapolis, Md.
