Mountain Hawks in Sole Possession of First Place After 2-1 Win Over Holy Cross

Sunday, September 26

Bethlehem, Pa.

12 p.m.

Lehigh University

4-4-1,2-0-1PL

Holy Cross

1-9-1,0-2-1PL

Team	1	2	Final F
Holy Cross	1	0	1
Lehigh	1	1	2

Photo by: Justin Lafleur

Mountain Hawks in Sole Possession of First Place After 2-1 Win Over Holy Cross

9/26/2021 6:43:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Box Score

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh women's soccer team controlled play, outshooting Holy Cross 18-6 and outscoring the Crusaders 2-1 to remain undefeated in Patriot League play on Sunday at the Ulrich Sports Complex. Freshman Corinne Lyght opened the scoring in the 35th minute, Holy Cross pulled even in the 39th minute, but sophomore Ava Schaller scored the game-winning goal in the 80th minute as Lehigh improves to 4-4-1 overall, 2-0-1 in league play.

Through three games, the Mountain Hawks are in sole possession of first place in the Patriot League with seven points.

"I thought we were dangerous," said Lehigh head coach Eric Lambinus. "I thought we were going to score. We created a bunch of chances. We lost our patience in a lot of our opportunities. I thought we were rushing things, taking shots from distance. We can clean some things up, but it is good that we continue to work and continue to get after it."

Lehigh has scored multiple goals in three straight games for the first time since the end of the 2018 regular season and into the Patriot League Tournament. The Mountain Hawks fired six of the game's first seven shots Sunday, with the sixth finding the back of the net. Freshman Hope Flanegin fed her classmate down the right side, and Lyght went on to fire a rocket into the left corner of the goal from a tough angle, at the 34:59 mark.

Corinne Lyght with the finish to put Lehigh in front.

Second half about to start, tied 1-1.

Watch: https://t.co/EV1ZwRIdvq pic.twitter.com/nuvXc0Amct
— Lehigh W. Soccer (@LehighWSoccer) September 26, 2021

"[Corinne is] a really good player," said Lambinus. "She's a burst of energy. She's a smart player and every time she gets it, she's dangerous. She's well-liked and a great kid. She adds something to our team."

However, less than four minutes later, Holy Cross pulled even as a shot snuck in underneath the crossbar.

The Crusaders had the first three second-half shots, but the Mountain Hawks responded with the next six to turn momentum right back in their favor. The score remained 1-1 until 79:53 when Lyght made a feed into the box. After an attempted tackle, Schaller fired into the top right corner of the goal for a 2-1 advantage.

A look at the game-winner from Ava Schaller in the 80th minute! pic.twitter.com/GIsIkYgBMo
— Lehigh W. Soccer (@LehighWSoccer) September 26, 2021

The Mountain Hawks' defense would not allow a shot the rest of the way.

Along with Lehigh's 18-6 shots edge, the Mountain Hawks held a 5-1 advantage in corner kicks. Sophomore Violette Bonvallet made one save in goal across Holy Cross' Olivia Dubin, who tallied four.

"I thought our defense was awesome," said Lambinus. "We only gave up two shots on goal. The defense was really solid. They're starting to organize, starting to get better. We made a change in there; Imani [Ashman] stepped in and did a really good job I thought against their best player."

Next, Lehigh will host Boston University this Friday at 6 p.m. on Senior Night.

"We put ourselves in a good position," said Lambinus. "Since I've been here, we have always seemed to put ourselves behind, always chasing the table.

"We had two games at home and Lafayette, which is somewhat of a home game. We felt seven points was a good goal, we got it, but the meat of our schedule is coming up. We have to get a couple results to give ourselves a chance to get into the [Patriot League Tournament]."

Like Lehigh Women's Soccer on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.

We caught up with Ava Schaller after she scored the game-winning goal in today's win! pic.twitter.com/iXBh36mNjz
— Lehigh W. Soccer (@LehighWSoccer) September 26, 2021