LEWISTON, Maine -- The Bates women's lacrosse team and No. 23 nationally ranked Amherst played a tightly contested game on Sunday, with the Mammoths scoring two late goals to edge the Bobcats 8-7 at Garcelon Field. 

Campbell Moriarty's goal with 1:29 left in regulation proved to be the difference for the visitors. 

The Bobcats (2-4, 0-3 NESCAC) got off to a strong start, taking a 4-2 lead through one quarter of action. Senior Kate Loughlin (York, Maine) scored the first goal of the day on an assist from sophomore Maddy Roelofs (Rye, N.H.) just under a minute into the contest.

With Bates trailing 2-1, senior Jordyn Tveter (Topsfield, Mass.) tallied the equalizer with 6:25 to go in the first, and Bates didn't trail again until late in the fourth quarter. Senior captain Dana Swartz (North Andover, Mass.) added a pair of goals to give the Bobcats their biggest lead of the game heading into the second quarter.

The second quarter proved to be a defensive struggle, with the Mammoths (4-1, 1-1 NESCAC) tallying a pair of goals, blanking the Bobcats along the way.

With the game tied at four at the half, the Bobcats inched ahead again in the third quarter. Tveter scored a pair of goals, including a player-down goal with 3:55 to go, putting Bates up 6-5.

The teams traded goals to start the fourth quarter, with first-year Trish Balser (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) scoring on an assist from Roelofs with 8:19 left in regulation, making the score 7-6 in favor of Bates.

But the Bobcats did not score after that, and Becky Kendall tied the game again with 5:11 remaining before Moriarty's game-winner.

Both goalkeepers turned in remarkable performances, with Caroline Fischer making seven saves for Amherst to get the win. Junior Cammie Lavoie (Epping, N.H.) was perhaps the player of the game for Bates, making 11 saves, recording a game-high five ground balls and causing a game-high five turnovers. Lavoie intercepted pass after pass around the net all day for the Bobcats. 

But Fischer made the save of the day when she denied Tveter on a free position attempt with 2:30 remaining, setting up the game-winning goal on the other end. 

Moriarty led the Mammoths with three goals and three ground balls. She also caused a turnover. Tveter tallied a hat trick as well for Bates, winning four draw controls along the way. Swartz added two goals of her own and both players caused one turnover each.

The Bobcats are back in action this Saturday when they host Middlebury at 12pm.