ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. – The Bard College women's lacrosse team dropped their first conference game of the season to the Skidmore Thoroughbreds this Saturday afternoon.

Izzi Popolizio led the charge for the Raptors today, making an impact on both ends of the field. Offensively, she finished with two goals on two shots and one assist. On defense, she led the team with four caused turnovers and seven ground balls. Gwendolyn Jamison followed closely with two goals, adding four shots on goal. Emerson Embrey also made her mark with one goal, one assist, and a team-high five shots. She scooped up three ground balls and won six draw controls. 

Maggy Peyton and Morgan Ruhle each contributed one goal and played key roles on defense. Peyton recorded three ground balls and won three draw controls, while Ruhle added two ground balls and won two draw controls. Both players caused two turnovers apiece. Gwyn Downey and Rian Sullivan also made their presence felt, with Downey notching one assist and Sullivan winning four draw controls.

Goalkeepers Lexie Blackburn and Keira Redmond combined for a total of five saves, with Blackburn making two and Redmond adding three.

Skidmore struck first and fast, quickly jumping to a 3-0 lead by the 7:40 mark. However, Embrey answered back swiftly with a free-position shot that found the back of the net, marking her 10th goal of the season. The Thoroughbreds responded with two more goals, but the Raptors continued to fight back, with Morgan Ruhle scoring a sneaky goal off an assist from Embrey. The two/one trend continued as Skidmore fired off two more goals, and Bard answered with one of their own—this time from Izzi Popolizio off a free-position shot.

After adding two more goals, Skidmore ended the high-energy period with a 9-3 lead, temporarily halting the back-and-forth action.

The Thoroughbreds came into the second period with the same intensity, scoring seven goals in the quarter, while the Raptors were only able to get two from Peyton and  Jamison.

Skidmore's momentum carried into the second half, as they outscored Bard 4-1 in the third and 5-1 in the fourth quarter. The final goals for the Raptors came from Jamison (assisted by Popolizio) and Popolizio (assisted by Downey). While Bard slowed down Skidmore's offensive production compared to the first half, they struggled to respond offensively.

The Raptors will hit the road for their spring break trip, heading to South Carolina, where they will face two teams, with the first being the Nor'easters of the University of New England on Monday.