Seeking their 17th Patriot League title since 2001, the fourth-seeded American University fell to first-seeded Colgate in four sets in the 2021 Patriot League women’s volleyball final on Saturday.
AU came into the game after routing second-seeded Lafayette in four sets, and Colgate entered the final after defeating sixth-seeded Navy. This final was the seventh Patriot League final meeting between the two teams.
In the first set, Colgate’s blocking was a problem for the Eagles, who simply could not find a way around. A serving error sunk AU 25-20 as Colgate took a 1-0 lead.
AU turned their fortunes around in the second set behind a strong effort from sophomore Katie Putney. A dig from graduate student Chiara Bosetti stifled a Colgate comeback, and the Eagles took the second set 25-19.
The beginning of the third set featured constant lead changes, and neither team could score more than two consecutive points. However, Colgate took the lead toward the middle of the set and eventually took AU out 25-19 to take a 2-1 set lead.
On the verge of a Patriot League title, Colgate came out of the gate pushing hard. Though a strong hit by all-Patriot League player junior Zeynep Uzen kept the Eagles in the game, there was no overcoming Colgate’s ironclad defense and explosive offense. Leading by as many as seven, the Raiders gave AU no breathing room and took the final set by a comfortable margin of 25-20.
