GENEVA, NY – The RIT (4-5, 2-1 Liberty League) women's lacrosse team dropped its first conference game of the season with a 17-15 loss at WIlliam Smith College (4-5, 2-1 Liberty League) at Cozzens Field on Friday afternoon. Junior Sage Sarkis (Honeoye Falls, NY/Honeoye Falls-Lima) led the Tigers with 10 points on seven goals and three assists. The 10 points are one shy of the RIT single-game record, which she accomplished last season.

Shots were 34-28 in favor of William Smith. The Tigers grabbed 15 ground balls to 18 for the Herons. RIT went 18-of-22 on clearing attempts, and were 3-for-8 on free position attempts.

Sarkis led RIT with seven goals, while Emily Livecchi (Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) tallied five points on three goals and two assists. Maegan Schmauder (Franklin, MA/Franklin) tallied a pair of goals, and Nicole Bingo (Webster, NY/Webster Schroeder), Corrina Mandell (Corning, NY/Corning East) and Mariah Hattel each scored a goal. Caitlin Conway (Landisville, PA/Hempfield) got the loss in net making 10 saves. Gwen Neuhaus (Woodbridge, VA/Potomac) led RIT with five ground balls.
  
Emy Stratton, Allie Flaherty and Geneva Calder led the Herons with three goals apiece. Hannah Connolly dished five assists, and Melissa Morre had two goals and an assist. Sarah Honan picked up the win in net for William Smith making 11 saves.
 
Goals from Bingo and Schamuder to open the game gave RIT an early 2-0 lead. Bingo scored off a feed from Livecchi 1:01 into the game. Schmauder took a feed from Sarkis and scored giving the Tigers a 2-0 lead early in the game.

Alexandra Bird got the Herons on the scoreboard on her goal with 25:40 to play, making it 2-1 RIT. After Sarkis converted a free position attempt, Moore made it 3-2 RIT with her goal at 24:13. Sarkis tallied her second of the game at 22:58 giving the Tigers a 4-2 lead. Calder scored two straight goals for the Herons, tying the score on her man-up goal with 15:18 to play.

Consecutive goals from Mandell, Sarkis and Livecchi late in the first half gave RIT a 7-4 lead. But, the Herons responded with a three-goal run of their own, tying the score a 7-7 on a Sarah Benyo goal with 2:07 to play in the half.

Livecchi opened the second half scoring with her 21st goal of the season off an assist from Sarkis that gave RIT an 8-7 lead. The Herons rattled off four straight goals, including two straight from Morgan Bayreuther, giving William Smith an 11-8 lead with 21:08 to play.

Two straight from Sarkis and one from Schmauder tied the score at 11-11 with 18:35 to play. Schmauder tied the game on a RIT fast break. She took a pass from Livecchi in stride and tallied her second of the game.

Hayley Braun gave William Smith the lead back with her unassisted goal with 18:13 to play. Sarkis tied the game at 12-12 on her sixth goal of the game with 13:15 to play in regulation.

Two straight from Stratton and Moore gave the Herons a 14-12 lead at the 7:42 mark of the half. Sarkis got RIT to within one at 14-13 on her seventh goal of the game. But, the Herons responded with two straight goals, taking a 16-13 lead on Flaherty's goal with 2:44 to play. Hettel added another goal with 1:28 to play, but the Herons scored with the goalie out of the net making it a 17-15 final.

RIT returns to action on Saturday when the Tigers face Liberty League foe Union College at 2 p.m. in Schenectady, N.Y.