With 21 seconds remaining in the game, the Siena Saints surrendered a free-position goal, as they would fall to the Columbia Lions by a final score of 13-12 on Saturday afternoon.

Siena (0-1) would get a trio of three goal games, as Kerry Gerety, Nicole McNeely, and Kaitlyn Dowsett each put up three goals apiece. Juniors Therese Pitman and Annie Brennan made up the other three goals for the Saints, as Pitman scored twice and Brennan once. Pitman also led the team in ground balls on the day with five. Goalie Sammy Horton played all 60 minutes, making 10 saves on the game.

Columbia (1-0) was led by a four-goal day from Alexandra Absey, as she led the Lions in shots with six. Lindsey Ewertsen and Emily Manville each tallied a pair of goals as well, while goalie Ryan Schlageter came in the second half and grabbed the win.

The Saints jumped on the board first as Gerety put the opening goal of the season on the score sheet six minutes into the first half. Then over a five-minute span starting from the 21-minute mark remaining in the half, Columbia scored four unanswered goals to take a 4-1 lead. But, Siena would respond with four unanswered goals of their own, with McNeely scoring twice, and capped by a score from Dowsett with 13 seconds to play in the half. That would give the Green and Gold a 5-3 lead going into the half.

The second half started with an outpour of offense, featuring five goals, three coming in the first two minutes. Columbia would tie things up with back-to-back goals to open the half in the first minute, followed by both teams trading goals through the midway point of the half. Gerety would score with 5:42 to go, giving Siena a 12-10 lead. But, Columbia would come back with a pair of goals to tie things up 12-12 with 2:38 to go. Then with 21 seconds left, the Lions got their go-ahead goal to snag the win.

Siena return to action Wednesday, Feb. 20 when they return to Loudonville for their home opener at Hickey Field. They will be taking on Army, with things kicking off at 3 p.m.