SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – The Union College women's lacrosse team jumped out to an early lead but could not keep the momentum going in a tough 15-11 defeat to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in a Liberty League matchup on Wednesday afternoon at Frank Bailey Field at Bertagna-Class of 1985 Stadium.
 
Union (4-5, 1-4 Liberty League) was led by sophomore Lindsay Gerrato, who scored a game-high six goals on eight shots and also controlled a game-high nine draws. Senior Ramsey Walsh also played well with two goals and an assist for the home team, while junior Ellie Taney kept Union in the game with a season-high 14 saves.
 
Union came out of the gates fast, scoring five of the game's first six goals to grab a 5-1 lead with 20:49 remaining. After Gerrato and RPI's Maddy Aslansan traded goals, Walsh scored two in a row to put the Dutchwomen back on top, followed by goals from senior Hannah Rosenberger and Gerrato that forced an RPI timeout.
 
But RPI (6-3, 3-3 Liberty League) slowly crept back into the game, outscoring Union 6-2 the rest of the way to knot the score at seven after 30 minutes. The Dutchwomen would likely have trailed at the half if not for the great play of Taney, who matched her season-high total of 12 saves just in the opening stanza.
 
The second half did not go the same way for the Dutchwomen, however, as Aslansan scored on the opening possession to give the visitors their first lead of the game and Union could never pull back to even the rest of the way.
 
Taney finished the game with 14 saves and also kept the Engineers scoreless on nine eight-meter attempts. Aleena Milinski made 10 saves at the other end for RPI, as the Engineers held a slight 32-28 edge in shots.
 
Union will play its next five games away from home, beginning on Saturday with a Liberty League matchup at the University of Rochester starting at 1 p.m.