CRESSON--The 2012-13 season marked another season of "firsts" for the Mount Aloysius College women's basketball team. The Lady Mounties finished the year at 17-10 and qualified for the A.M.C.C. playoffs for the third consecutive season.This year, however, it was the first time that they scored a playoff win on the road.

Mount Aloysius upset fourth seeded Pitt-Bradford in dramatic fashion, 66-63, in the opening round of the playoffs.Making the win perhaps more impressive, however, is the fact that Pitt-Bradford had swept Mount Aloysius during the regular season.

“I told the girls, it is tough to beat a team three times in a row.So, I thought we went into the game with an advantage.I thought our 2-3 zone proved to be too much for them and it was a great win for us,”second-year Mount Aloysius coach Kristi Kaack said.

The Lady Mounties’ victory over Pitt-Bradford also marked the first time in school history the team had advanced to the second round of the A.M.C.C. tournament in back-to-back seasons.

Unfortunately, Mount Aloysius fell to three-time defending champion, and tournament host, La Roche College in the subsequent round.

“Our team came out a little intimidated by (La Roche’s) pressure, and we missed some shots early.But you can’t judge a season by one game.We worked really hard as a team and were successful, especially when you look back at some of the highlights of our season,” Kaack said.

Among their season highlights was the Lady Mounties’ wins over perennial conference power Penn State-Behrend.Mount Aloysius defeated the Lions, 68-62, in early December, and, 86-81, in late January.

The latter win was a double-overtime thriller, and was addedly special, as it was the first time since joining the A.M.C.C. that Mount Aloysius had beaten Penn State-Behrend twice in the same season.

It was also special, because junior Lindsy Sammarco, a Bishop Carroll alum, became just the sixth player in Mount Aloysius women’s basketball history to reach the 1,000 career-point plateau, during that game.

Sammarco averaged 17.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game this year, and her efforts were rewarded at the end of the season when she was named a first-team all-conference selection.Sammarco rated in the top ten in the league in eight different statistical categories.

Freshman point guard Becky Bard also garnered all-conference honors.The 2012 Forest Hills grad poured in 16.0 points per game and was named second-team all-conference.She also shot a team-best .421 from the field.

Sammarco and Bard provided Mount Aloysius with a solid one-two scoring punch from the perimeter. Bard ranked fifth in the conference in scoring, and Sammarco was second in points scored.

“Lindsy upped her game at every level, offensively and defensively.She was the leader on the team, and she pretty much did it all for us this year. Bard had a great freshman year, and proved that she can do it at this level,” Kaack said.

Kaack has good reason to be excited about next year’s campaign.The Lady Mounties return all five of their starters for 2013-14, and just over 90-percent of their offensive output.

“We are obviously looking to bring a little more height in to help us with rebounding,” Kaack said. “But we are looking forward to having most of our team back, and improving our record again next year.”