Lehigh University
(5-2, 1-1PL)
Holy Cross
(4-4, 1-1PL)
Mountain Hawks fight back in the fourth again, but fall short vs. Holy Cross, 4-2
9/28/2019 3:30:00 PM | Field Hockey
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"We knew this game was going to be a battle, as it always is with this team and within the league," said Lehigh associate head coach Taylor Dyer. "Moving forward, we will need to focus more on consistency. There were moments where we showed a lot of fight, fought back and executed the way we know we're able but unfortunately, we had lapses in which Holy Cross capitalized."
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The Crusaders outshot the Mountain Hawks 9-4 in the first half, 6-1 in shots on goal. Late in the second quarter, Holy Cross capitalized on the pressure with just 1:01 and 29 seconds remaining, to take a 2-0 halftime advantage. Lehigh's best first-half chance came off the stick of junior Drew Pecora in the 23rd minute, getting a piece of the goalkeeper and the post.
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Lehigh created its first two penalty corners of the game in the third quarter and fired three shots on goal, but couldn't generate a goal as the teams went to the fourth with the same 2-0 score.
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Pecora sparked the Mountain Hawks in the 49th minute. Off a turnover, she made an impressive individual effort along the left side, and end line, beating Holy Cross goalkeeper Marcia LaPlante from a tough angle to cut Lehigh's deficit in half with more than 10 minutes still remaining. It marked Pecora's fourth straight game with a goal, as she has six goals over her last four games and eight on the season – adding to her goal and point totals that were already top 10 in the nation (now eight goals and 18 points, respectively).
ÂTake a look at Drew Pecora's eighth goal of the season that pulled the Mountain Hawks within 2-1 in the fourth. What a great individual effort. pic.twitter.com/2M8GWTSIum
— Lehigh Field Hockey (@LehighFH) September 28, 2019
Lehigh pulled even less than six minutes later as of its second successive corner, sophomore Leah Mullery redirected a pass from junior Lenke Havas past LaPlante at the 54:05 mark. It marked the Mountain Hawks' sixth straight game with multiple goals.
ÂLess than six minutes later, the Mountain Hawks pulled even with this Leah Mullery score off a penalty corner. pic.twitter.com/GpfXjJlYtu
— Lehigh Field Hockey (@LehighFH) September 28, 2019
The momentum was short-lived, however. Holy Cross scored goals at 54:38 and 55:29 to retake a two-goal advantage, as the 4-2 score proved to be final.
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Final shots were 17-15 in favor of Holy Cross while Lehigh held a 6-4 edge in penalty corners. Freshman Maddie Kahn made nine saves for the Mountain Hawks while LaPlante tallied eight.
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Lehigh will look to bounce back in less than 24 hours when it faces Bryant on Sunday at 11 a.m. The game will be played at Bryant University in Providence, R.I. Â
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"We saw some strong performances from some of our defensive players," said Dyer. "Lenke Havas and Amanda Boyer did a nice job starting a lot of the attack and pushing forward. I am always impressed by the team's ability to turn it on in the fourth quarter when we're down. It's been two weekends in a row, but we have to work on playing a better full 60 minutes so we're not in these catch-up situations."
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Team Stats
Walsh, Sinead (1)
Assisted By: Koomen, Minke
GOAL by HC Walsh, Sinead (FIRST GOAL), Assist by Koomen, Minke, goal number 1 for season.
28:59
Koomen, Minke (4)
Assisted By: Alderfer, Madeline
GOAL by HC Koomen, Minke, Assist by Alderfer, Madeline, goal number 4 for season.
29:31
Pecora, Drew
GOAL by LEHIGH Pecora, Drew.
48:55
Mullery, Leah
Assisted By: Havas, Lenke
GOAL by LEHIGH Mullery, Leah, Assist by Havas, Lenke.
54:05
Mulherin, Megan (1)
Assisted By: Bolivar, Kerri
GOAL by HC Mulherin, Megan, Assist by Bolivar, Kerri, goal number 1 for season.
54:38
Fitzgerald,Philomena (1)
Assisted By: Koomen, Minke
GOAL by HC Fitzgerald,Philomena, Assist by Koomen, Minke, goal number 1 for season.
55:29
