Saturday, September 26
Princeton, N.J.
5:00 PM
Lehigh University
2-2
26
at
52
Princeton
2-0
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Lehigh
7
6
0
13
26
Princeton
10
14
7
21
52
Mistakes hurt Lehigh in 52-26 loss at Princeton
9/26/2015 9:09:00 PM | Football
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PRINCETON, N.J. – The Lehigh football team took a 13-10 lead late in the second quarter but Princeton answered with 21 unanswered points to hand the Mountain Hawks a 52-26 loss Saturday at Princeton Stadium. The Tigers forced four second-half Lehigh turnovers to thwart any chance of a Mountain Hawk comeback. Lehigh falls to 2-2 with the loss while Princeton improves to 2-0.
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Sophomore Troy Pelletier set a school single-game record with 15 receptions, good for 158 yards and a touchdown. Junior Nick Shafnisky completed 26-of-39 passes for 348 yards and a touchdown and added 49 yards on 11 rushes. Shafnisky threw a pair of interceptions on balls that went off Lehigh receivers and also fumbled after picking up a 4th-and-2 in the third quarter.
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Freshman Dom Bragalone had the best day of his short Lehigh career on the ground, gaining 129 yards on 21 carries.
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Lehigh out-gained Princeton 561-479 but finished minus three in the turnover battle and was penalized ten times for 80 yards.(9/26/2015) Football at Princeton - 9/26/2015
"Too many penalties and turnovers," Lehigh head coach Andy Coen said. "Every time we did something good, something bad happened. Last week we overcame that stuff, we were good on the mental toughness side of things. The kids didn't bring it today the way we needed too."
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Both teams scored touchdowns within the opening five minutes of the contest. The Tigers took the opening kickoff and drove 75 yards in eight plays, scoring on an eight-yard run by Joe Rhattigan. Lehigh answered with a five-play, 77-yard drive. Shafnisky hit sophomore Sasha Kelsey for 64 yards to move into Tiger territory, then Bragalone capped the drive with a four-yard run around the right end to tie the score.
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Princeton took the lead on a 38-yard Nolan Bieck field goal and looked for more after forcing a Lehigh punt. The Tigers moved the ball into Mountain Hawk territory but a good tackle by junior Brandon Leaks left Princeton short, and senior Noah Robb stuffed AJ Glass on 4th and 3 to give Lehigh the ball back at its own 17.
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A pair of field goals from freshman Ed Mish gave Lehigh a 13-10 lead with 3:14 left in the half, but the Tigers scored two touchdowns in the final three minutes to take a 24-13 lead into halftime. Rhattigan's second touchdown of the day, a 12-yarder put the Tigers back in front, then after a Lehigh three-and-out, Chad Kanoff hit Seth DeValve for a 26-yard score to extend the halftime advantage to 11.
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"We didn't finish today," Coen said. "Last week we had success because we finished drives. Today we settled for two field goals down there and that's a loss of momentum. We have to find a way to finish."
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Princeton out-gained Lehigh 293-269 through the first 30 minutes. Shafnisky completed 11-of-17 passes for 166 yards and rushed eight times for 27. Bragalone led the Lehigh offense in the first half, rushing 13 times for 74 yards. Pelletier was the top receiver with six catches for 60 yards and junior Colton Caslow led the defense with 11 tackles.
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Lehigh moved the ball into Princeton territory on the opening drive of the second half but after running left to convert a fourth down, was hit, fumbled, and John Hill recovered the ball for Princeton, returning it to the Lehigh 35.
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The Mountain Hawk defense stood tall however, getting the ball back on downs after junior Pierce Ripanti tackled DiAndre Atwater short of the first down on 4th-and-2.
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Three plays later Princeton extended its lead as Shafnisky's pass went off the hands of senior Derek Knott and into the arms of the Tigers' RJ Paige, who ran 36 yards for a touchdown that made the score 31-13 Princeton.
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Lehigh's next drive also resulted in an interception off a tipped pass but the Mountain Hawks were able to keep the Tigers off the scoreboard for the remainder of the third quarter.
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Princeton was on the move early in the fourth, but a failed trick play led to a Lehigh defensive score. The Tigers tried to throw a lateral back to quarterback Chad Kanoff but senior cornerback Olivier Rigaud, hit Kanoff, forcing a fumble and then scooped up the ball and raced 72 yards for a touchdown. The extra point was blocked, leaving Lehigh down 31-19 with 14:22 to play.
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Lehigh's momentum was short-lived as Princeton responded with a six-play, 71-yards, capped by a 30-yard touchdown pass from Kanoff to Scott Carpenter. The Tigers added a five-yard touchdown run by Atwater to go up 45-19, before the Mountain Hawks came back with an eight-play, 70-yard drive capped by a seven yard touchdown pass from Shafnisky to Pelletier, the sophomore's school record-setting 15th grab of the game.
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Glass capped the scoring with a four yard touchdown run for Princeton.
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Kanoff finished 13-of-24 for 195 yards and two touchdowns for the Tigers, while Atwater was the top rusher with 93 yards on 18 carries.
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Caslow paced Lehigh defensively with 14 tackles, while Ripanti added eight including two for loss.
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"We've got to look at things," Coen said. "Dom did a great job. I thought our offensive linemen in the run game were pretty stout. We were moving people and getting yards but a lot more bad things in penalties and things like that."
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The Mountain hawks will return home to face Yale next Saturday on Homecoming at Goodman Stadium. Kickoff is set for just after 12:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased by calling 610-7LU-GAME or by visiting LehighTickets.com.
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EXTRA POINTS… Five players shared the previous school record of 14 receptions, including Rennie Benn '86 who did it twice… the most recent Lehigh player with a 14 catch game was Lee Kurfis '14 in 2013… Bragalone became the second Lehigh freshman in as many weeks to rush for 100 yards in a game after no Mountain Hawk had previously accomplished the feat since Dave Wilson rushed for 154 versus Fordham in 2000… Princeton snapped a four-game losing streak against Lehigh… the Mountain Hawks were held without a sack for the first time this season… Rigaud's touchdown was Lehigh's first fumble return touchdown since Jason Suggs last year at Cornell, and the first touchdown for the Lehigh defense since Brandon Leaks returned an interception for a score at Yale.
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Like Lehigh Football on Facebook and follow on Twitter for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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PRINCETON, N.J. – The Lehigh football team took a 13-10 lead late in the second quarter but Princeton answered with 21 unanswered points to hand the Mountain Hawks a 52-26 loss Saturday at Princeton Stadium. The Tigers forced four second-half Lehigh turnovers to thwart any chance of a Mountain Hawk comeback. Lehigh falls to 2-2 with the loss while Princeton improves to 2-0.
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Sophomore Troy Pelletier set a school single-game record with 15 receptions, good for 158 yards and a touchdown. Junior Nick Shafnisky completed 26-of-39 passes for 348 yards and a touchdown and added 49 yards on 11 rushes. Shafnisky threw a pair of interceptions on balls that went off Lehigh receivers and also fumbled after picking up a 4th-and-2 in the third quarter.
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Freshman Dom Bragalone had the best day of his short Lehigh career on the ground, gaining 129 yards on 21 carries.
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Lehigh out-gained Princeton 561-479 but finished minus three in the turnover battle and was penalized ten times for 80 yards.
"Too many penalties and turnovers," Lehigh head coach Andy Coen said. "Every time we did something good, something bad happened. Last week we overcame that stuff, we were good on the mental toughness side of things. The kids didn't bring it today the way we needed too."
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Both teams scored touchdowns within the opening five minutes of the contest. The Tigers took the opening kickoff and drove 75 yards in eight plays, scoring on an eight-yard run by Joe Rhattigan. Lehigh answered with a five-play, 77-yard drive. Shafnisky hit sophomore Sasha Kelsey for 64 yards to move into Tiger territory, then Bragalone capped the drive with a four-yard run around the right end to tie the score.
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Princeton took the lead on a 38-yard Nolan Bieck field goal and looked for more after forcing a Lehigh punt. The Tigers moved the ball into Mountain Hawk territory but a good tackle by junior Brandon Leaks left Princeton short, and senior Noah Robb stuffed AJ Glass on 4th and 3 to give Lehigh the ball back at its own 17.
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A pair of field goals from freshman Ed Mish gave Lehigh a 13-10 lead with 3:14 left in the half, but the Tigers scored two touchdowns in the final three minutes to take a 24-13 lead into halftime. Rhattigan's second touchdown of the day, a 12-yarder put the Tigers back in front, then after a Lehigh three-and-out, Chad Kanoff hit Seth DeValve for a 26-yard score to extend the halftime advantage to 11.
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"We didn't finish today," Coen said. "Last week we had success because we finished drives. Today we settled for two field goals down there and that's a loss of momentum. We have to find a way to finish."
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Princeton out-gained Lehigh 293-269 through the first 30 minutes. Shafnisky completed 11-of-17 passes for 166 yards and rushed eight times for 27. Bragalone led the Lehigh offense in the first half, rushing 13 times for 74 yards. Pelletier was the top receiver with six catches for 60 yards and junior Colton Caslow led the defense with 11 tackles.
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Lehigh moved the ball into Princeton territory on the opening drive of the second half but after running left to convert a fourth down, was hit, fumbled, and John Hill recovered the ball for Princeton, returning it to the Lehigh 35.
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The Mountain Hawk defense stood tall however, getting the ball back on downs after junior Pierce Ripanti tackled DiAndre Atwater short of the first down on 4th-and-2.
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Three plays later Princeton extended its lead as Shafnisky's pass went off the hands of senior Derek Knott and into the arms of the Tigers' RJ Paige, who ran 36 yards for a touchdown that made the score 31-13 Princeton.
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Lehigh's next drive also resulted in an interception off a tipped pass but the Mountain Hawks were able to keep the Tigers off the scoreboard for the remainder of the third quarter.
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Princeton was on the move early in the fourth, but a failed trick play led to a Lehigh defensive score. The Tigers tried to throw a lateral back to quarterback Chad Kanoff but senior cornerback Olivier Rigaud, hit Kanoff, forcing a fumble and then scooped up the ball and raced 72 yards for a touchdown. The extra point was blocked, leaving Lehigh down 31-19 with 14:22 to play.
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Lehigh's momentum was short-lived as Princeton responded with a six-play, 71-yards, capped by a 30-yard touchdown pass from Kanoff to Scott Carpenter. The Tigers added a five-yard touchdown run by Atwater to go up 45-19, before the Mountain Hawks came back with an eight-play, 70-yard drive capped by a seven yard touchdown pass from Shafnisky to Pelletier, the sophomore's school record-setting 15th grab of the game.
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Glass capped the scoring with a four yard touchdown run for Princeton.
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Kanoff finished 13-of-24 for 195 yards and two touchdowns for the Tigers, while Atwater was the top rusher with 93 yards on 18 carries.
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Caslow paced Lehigh defensively with 14 tackles, while Ripanti added eight including two for loss.
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"We've got to look at things," Coen said. "Dom did a great job. I thought our offensive linemen in the run game were pretty stout. We were moving people and getting yards but a lot more bad things in penalties and things like that."
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The Mountain hawks will return home to face Yale next Saturday on Homecoming at Goodman Stadium. Kickoff is set for just after 12:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased by calling 610-7LU-GAME or by visiting LehighTickets.com.
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EXTRA POINTS… Five players shared the previous school record of 14 receptions, including Rennie Benn '86 who did it twice… the most recent Lehigh player with a 14 catch game was Lee Kurfis '14 in 2013… Bragalone became the second Lehigh freshman in as many weeks to rush for 100 yards in a game after no Mountain Hawk had previously accomplished the feat since Dave Wilson rushed for 154 versus Fordham in 2000… Princeton snapped a four-game losing streak against Lehigh… the Mountain Hawks were held without a sack for the first time this season… Rigaud's touchdown was Lehigh's first fumble return touchdown since Jason Suggs last year at Cornell, and the first touchdown for the Lehigh defense since Brandon Leaks returned an interception for a score at Yale.
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Like Lehigh Football on Facebook and follow on Twitter for exclusive updates throughout the season.
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Team Stats
LEHIGH
PRIN
Total Yards
561
479
Pass Yards
363
235
Rushing Yards
198
244
Penalty Yards
60
20
1st Downs
24
28
3rd Downs
7
6
4th Downs
1
0
TOP
33:39
26:21
1st Quarter
LEHIGH 0, PRIN 7
PRIN - Rhattigan, Joe 8 yd run (Bieck, Nolan kick), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:52
LEHIGH 7, PRIN 7
LEHIGH - Bragalone, Dom 4 yd run (Mish, Ed kick), 5 plays, 77 yards, TOP 1:51
LEHIGH 7, PRIN 10
PRIN - Bieck, Nolan 38 yd field goal 10 plays, 37 yards, TOP 3:14
2nd Quarter
LEHIGH 10, PRIN 10
LEHIGH - Mish, Ed 30 yd field goal 14 plays, 70 yards, TOP 6:47
LEHIGH 13, PRIN 10
LEHIGH - Mish, Ed 33 yd field goal 11 plays, 58 yards, TOP 5:40
LEHIGH 13, PRIN 17
PRIN - Rhattigan, Joe 12 yd run (Bieck, Nolan kick), 3 plays, 56 yards, TOP 1:03
LEHIGH 13, PRIN 24
PRIN - DeValve, Seth 26 yd pass from Kanoff, Chad (Bieck, Nolan kick) 3 plays, 64 yards, TOP 0:46
3rd Quarter
LEHIGH 13, PRIN 31
PRIN - Paige, RJ 36 yd interception (Bieck, Nolan kick)
4th Quarter
LEHIGH 19, PRIN 31
LEHIGH - Rigaud, Olivier 72 yd fumble recovery (Mish, Ed kickblocked)
LEHIGH 19, PRIN 38
PRIN - Carpenter, S 30 yd pass from Kanoff, Chad (Bieck, Nolan kick) 6 plays, 71 yards, TOP 2:30
LEHIGH 19, PRIN 45
PRIN - Atwater, D 5 yd run (Bieck, Nolan kick), 6 plays, 30 yards, TOP 2:31
LEHIGH 26, PRIN 45
LEHIGH - Pelletier, Troy 7 yd pass from Shafnisky, Nick (Mish, Ed kick) 8 plays, 70 yards, TOP 2:43
LEHIGH 26, PRIN 52
PRIN - Glass, AJ 4 yd run (Bieck, Nolan kick), 7 plays, 42 yards, TOP 3:26
Game Leaders
Passing Leaders
CMP
26
TD
1
YDS
348
INT
2
CMP
3
TD
0
YDS
15
INT
0
Players Mentioned
LB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
QB
/ Football
DB
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