Thursday, February 20
Bethlehem, Pa.
5 p.m.
Lehigh University
2-1
14
vs
11
VMI
0-2
1
2
3
4
F
VMI
4
2
4
1
11
Lehigh
1
4
6
3
14
Photo by: Matt Smith
Pettit’s record-tying performances paces No. 18 Mountain Hawks in 14-11 win over VMI
2/20/2020 9:15:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The No. 18 Lehigh men's lacrosse team fell into a 6-2 hole midway through the second quarter, but rebounded to outscore visiting VMI 12-5 the rest of the way in a 14-11 victory on Thursday evening at the Ulrich Sports Complex, presented by Lehigh Valley Hotel and Conference Center. Fifth-year senior Andrew Pettit paced the offense with a career-high eight goals, which also tied a 23-year old program record. He finished with five of Lehigh's six third-quarter goals and six of the Mountain Hawks' nine second-half goals in a dominant performance. The win improves Lehigh's record to 2-1 on the young season.
"We needed every single one of the eight goals from Pettit," said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. "He'd been struggling a little bit in the early season. I challenged him in the pregame before we came out for the first faceoff and I thought he really rose to the occasions. For him to step up like that was really big. We needed some leadership tonight. I felt like we didn't have a lot of it throughout the early stages of the game, but he provided a tremendous boost – a great spark – and a lot of leadership for us."
"Our offense worked really well today," said Pettit. "I was the beneficiary of a lot of great passes and was able to put them in the back of the net, but the offense as a whole played really together. Extra passes was leading to more open shots. That ended up piling together and we put a lot on the board tonight. I'm proud of the way the offense played."
Defensively, sophomore Michael Hagenberger had two groundballs and a team-high two caused turnovers in his first start of the season. The Mountain Hawks won 18-of-28 faceoffs for the game, led by 12-of-17 with six groundballs from senior Connor Gaffney. Junior Teddy Leggett also collected seven groundballs.
The Keydets enjoyed a fast start, scoring first and later using a 5-1 run to take a 6-2 lead with 7:37 left in the second quarter.
The Mountain Hawks' response began late in the quarter, as Schelling, Pettit and junior Kevin Gersbeck all scored in the span of 1:35 to pull Lehgih within 6-5 at the half. Gersbeck's goal marked the first of his career.
"I saw a VMI team that was really impressive," said Cassese. "They took the fight to us. Offensively, they were swarming us. They really got after the groundball. I thought they outplayed us for the majority of the game. I'm definitely proud of our guys for answering. It was tough sledding for us tonight, mostly due to them and what they were doing to us. But at the end of the day, I thought our guys dug deep and managed to fight, get the comeback and get the victory."
The Mountain Hawks return to action in less than 48 hours when they travel to NJIT on Saturday to face the Highlanders. Gametime is set for 12 p.m.
Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
"We needed every single one of the eight goals from Pettit," said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. "He'd been struggling a little bit in the early season. I challenged him in the pregame before we came out for the first faceoff and I thought he really rose to the occasions. For him to step up like that was really big. We needed some leadership tonight. I felt like we didn't have a lot of it throughout the early stages of the game, but he provided a tremendous boost – a great spark – and a lot of leadership for us."
Pettit's eight goals came on 11 shots, breaking his previous career high of five goals. He tied the program record originally set by Mark Duncan on Apr. 12, 1997 against Bucknell. Pettit also shattered his career high for groundballs, finishing with eight. Meanwhile, sophomore Tommy Schelling continued his stellar play to start the season, tallying six points (three goals, three assists). Through three games, Schelling owns 13 goals and six assists. Freshman Christian Mule' impressed as well, recording four points via a goal and three assists.What. A. Game for Andrew Pettit on Thursday night as he tied a 23-year program record for goals with eight in @LehighLacrosse's 14-11 win over VMI. FIVE of the goals came in the third quarter alone. @NCAALAX @Inside_Lacrosse @USLacrosseMag @PatriotLeague pic.twitter.com/QGKs1c632z
— Lehigh Sports (@LehighSports) February 21, 2020
"Our offense worked really well today," said Pettit. "I was the beneficiary of a lot of great passes and was able to put them in the back of the net, but the offense as a whole played really together. Extra passes was leading to more open shots. That ended up piling together and we put a lot on the board tonight. I'm proud of the way the offense played."
Defensively, sophomore Michael Hagenberger had two groundballs and a team-high two caused turnovers in his first start of the season. The Mountain Hawks won 18-of-28 faceoffs for the game, led by 12-of-17 with six groundballs from senior Connor Gaffney. Junior Teddy Leggett also collected seven groundballs.
The Keydets enjoyed a fast start, scoring first and later using a 5-1 run to take a 6-2 lead with 7:37 left in the second quarter.
The Mountain Hawks' response began late in the quarter, as Schelling, Pettit and junior Kevin Gersbeck all scored in the span of 1:35 to pull Lehgih within 6-5 at the half. Gersbeck's goal marked the first of his career.
VMI opened the third-quarter scoring, but goals from Schelling, Pettit and again Pettit – in the span of 3:20 – gave Lehigh its first lead at 8-7. The Keydets responded to pull even at eight, nine, 10 and 11, but the Mountain Hawks ended the game on a 3-0 run to turn an 11-11 tie into a 14-11 final.Kevin Gersbeck pulls Lehigh within one after scoring his first career goal in the final minutes of the first half! Let's go Mountain Hawks!!#WinToday Watch the excitement live: https://t.co/lniVr0QZL5 pic.twitter.com/BIPsnh2QJL
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) February 20, 2020
For the game, the Mountain Hawks held a 34-26 edge in shots and 46-35 advantage in groundballs. Junior goaltender James Spence made eight saves across VMI's Bill Osteen, who recorded nine.Schelling finds the back of the net for the third time today to extend Lehigh's lead to 14-11. Watch live: https://t.co/lniVr0QZL5 pic.twitter.com/ir8KUO8S2b
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) February 21, 2020
"I saw a VMI team that was really impressive," said Cassese. "They took the fight to us. Offensively, they were swarming us. They really got after the groundball. I thought they outplayed us for the majority of the game. I'm definitely proud of our guys for answering. It was tough sledding for us tonight, mostly due to them and what they were doing to us. But at the end of the day, I thought our guys dug deep and managed to fight, get the comeback and get the victory."
The Mountain Hawks return to action in less than 48 hours when they travel to NJIT on Saturday to face the Highlanders. Gametime is set for 12 p.m.
Like Lehigh men's lacrosse on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.
Here's what @CoachCassese had to say following tonight's win over VMI! pic.twitter.com/k24t7A3evm
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) February 21, 2020
We caught up with Andrew Pettit following the Mountain Hawks' 14-11 win over VMI, which included his program-record tying eight goals! pic.twitter.com/o7ypmDfeim
— Lehigh Lacrosse (@LehighLacrosse) February 21, 2020
Team Stats
VMI
LEHIGH
Shots
26
34
Turnovers
14
19
Caused Turnovers
12
8
Faceoffs Won
10
18
Extra-Man Opps
2
5
Ground Balls
35
46
Game Leaders
Players
G
8
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
8
CT
0
G
3
A
3
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
1
G
1
A
3
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
2
CT
0
G
1
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
Players Mentioned
M
/ Men's Lacrosse
D/LSM
/ Men's Lacrosse
LSM/D
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's LacrosseA
/ Men's Lacrosse
G
/ Men's LacrosseLehigh Sports Central: Men's Lacrosse
Thursday, April 24
2025 Season Preview: Men's Lacrosse
Friday, January 31
Lehigh Sports Central: Men's Lacrosse
Wednesday, April 10
