WASHINGTON, D.C. – No. 18 Lehigh saw its five match unbeaten streak come to an end on Sunday afternoon, falling to American by a score of 2-1 in overtime.
The game-winning goal came with just eight seconds remaining in the first overtime session, and was scored by Coco Del Rio off of a scramble play in front of the net.
With the loss, Lehigh, ranked second in the Mid-Atlantic Region, falls to 6-2-1 on the season, 2-1 in Patriot League play, and the Eagles improve to 3-6-1 overall and 2-1 in league action.
Neither team was able to get anything going offensively in the first half, which resulted in a scoreless tie heading into halftime. Senior Adam Williamson got the Mountain Hawks on the board first when he scored at the 51:33 mark off of a throw-in from junior Tom Zubulake. Lehigh would retain its 1-0 lead for the next 32 minutes, and looked as though it was on its way to another victory, but Del Rio fired a shot past Mountain Hawk keeper Charlie Sales off of a pass from Sal Caccavale, and the Eagles had tied the match at one with just 7:13 remaining.
The two teams then headed for overtime, where Del Rio scored the game-winner. He was assisted by Philip Purdy and Justin Turco. Sales finished with five saves in goal for the Brown and White, while American keeper Chris Sedlak recorded five saves of his own. Lehigh was out shot 20-11 on the day, and had only two corner kicks, to the Eagles ten.
Lehigh returns to action on Wednesday afternoon as the Mountain Hawks travel to Philadelphia to take on a very strong Villanova team. Game time is scheduled for 3:00.
