Box Score ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. - The time for moral victories has passed. The Bard College women's lacrosse team is only interested in actual victories now.

It was in evidence on Wednesday night, when Mount Saint Mary College, a team that has easily dispatched Bard twice over the last two years, escaped Bard with a 12-10 victory, Bard's first loss of the season.

Mount Saint Mary (1-4) defeated Bard 16-6 in 2010 and 11-4 last year, but Wednesday's game didn't come close to resembling either of those two games. This game was tense, and it was tied eight different times before Mount Saint Mary got a little breathing room late in the second half, then went into a stall on offense to run out the clock.

The first half went back and forth, with no team gaining more than a one-goal lead. It was 7-6 in favor of the Knights at the break, but it was what happened just before halftime that had everyone's attention. Mount Saint Mary College freshman Ela Igdeler (Islip, NY) picked up her third yellow card with 2:30 to go before halftime, meaning she was ejected from the game.

So Bard (4-1) entered the second half with the knowledge that Igdeler, who leads the Knights in several categories, wasn't going to be playing.

Mount Saint Mary made some adjustments and made it work. To offset the work of Bard freshman Joanna Regan, sophomore Nicole Palmieri started taking draw controls, and that gave the Knights more possessions. Then, unlike the first half, the Knights were much more deliberate on offense, really taking their time and making sure they got good looks at the net.

It paid off early in the second half, when Nicole Cacioppo (Glen Cove, NY) gave Mount Saint Mary an 8-6 lead, but Bard scored three of the next four goals, and it was 9-9 with 12:04 left in the game.

The Knights scored three goals over a 2:49 span to go up 12-9 with 6:53 left. Bard's Stephanie LaMont scored a man-up goal with about five minutes left, but the Raptors couldn't get closer.

Mount Saint Mary freshman goalie Lauren Beltrami was excellent, particularly in the second half. Bard outshot Mount Saint Mary, 38-28, and Beltrami made 12 saves. Ellen Cashin (Rockaway Beach, NY), Erica Massmann (West Babylon, NY) and Kaileen Spadaro (Islip, NY) each scored twice for the winners.

Bard got four goals and an assist from sophomore Brianna Bean, three goals and an assist from sophomore Stephanie LaMont, two goals from freshman Reed Mango and a goal and two assists from Regan. Regan and Mango tied for the team lead with six ground balls apiece, and Regan caused five turnovers. Sophomore Victoria Fleisher collected seven ground balls for Bard, and Maddy Huggins made eight saves.

Next up for the Raptors is their first Liberty League game, on Mar. 30 at Union College.