ALBANY, N.Y. - In a tightly contested back-and-forth match, the Bard College women's volleyball team was unable to come away victorious, falling 3-1 to The Sage Colleges Wednesday evening.

All four sets were closely contested, with Bard (3-5) winning the first set but then dropping the next three, falling 25-22, 23-25, 20-25, and 25-27. The Raptors started out strong, winning eight of the first 10 points in set one. Sage (1-10) pushed back and eventually cut the lead to 17-15, but the visitors were able to hold off the late push and pick up the win to go up 1-0.

Bard again started strong in the second set, winning the first three points, but the Gators then won five straight points to take the lead. The teams traded points back-and-forth until the middle of the set, when Sage won seven out of eight points to take a 19-13 lead. The Raptors answered with a rally of their own, winning six of the next eight to cut the lead to two, but the Gators closed out the set by winning two of the final three points to tie the match at one set apiece.

Bard fell behind early in the third set following a pair of strong stretches by Sage and were never able to catch up, dropping the set by five points. They fell behind in the fourth set as well, surrendering five of the first six points, but were able to rally and eventually take a 22-21 lead. The Gators then won back-to-back points to take a one point lead, and closed out the match with three straight points for a 27-25 win in set four.

On the night, junior Mikala L'Hote led the Raptors with 14 kills, followed by sophomore Morenike Fabiyi with nine. Senior Jewel Smith had a strong night for Bard, picking up eight kills, 32 assists and 22 digs. Senior Maracela Talamantes had five kills and eight digs, and senior Emily Anastasi tied a season-high with 38 digs.

The Raptors return to action Saturday, Sept. 21, when they return home for a tri-match, first hosting Mount Saint Mary College (N.Y.) at 11:00 a.m., then facing off with Hartwick College at 3:00 p.m.