BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh men's soccer team ended the spring 2021 campaign on a high note on Friday night, shutting out Colgate 1-0 at the Ulrich Sports Complex. The Mountain Hawks (2-4-0) snapped a three-match losing streak and a two-match scoring drought in the process, defeating the Raiders (1-4-1) for the second time in a row.
 
"It was nice for the seniors to come out and finish the season for them with a win," said associate head coach Ryan Hess following the win. "It was also big for us to get a lot of the younger guys valuable minutes. But winning on our home field was also nice. It was a good way to finish off a challenging spring as far as results go."
 
Despite a matchup that was deadlocked at 0-0 for majority of the match, specifically the first 70 minutes or so, it was sophomore Dominic Flowers who got on the board with his first career goal in the 72nd minute to hand the Mountain Hawks the 1-0 lead.
 
Lehigh registered the first three shots of the contest in the first 17 minutes, as Colgate responded off a corner kick in the 23rd with back-to-back shots on goal from Aidan Davock and Bobby Foose, both saved by freshman goalkeeper Blake Koski.
 
Sophomore forward Jack Sarkos got involved with a wide shot in the 42nd minute as Foose tallied his second shot on goal of the evening just a minute later for Koski's third save.
 
While the Mountain Hawks out-shot Colgate, 4-3 in the first half, the Raiders out-shot Lehigh 3-1 over the final 23 minutes.
 
With freshman goalkeeper Jesse Ryan in net for the first time this season, the Raiders got off a flurry of chances in a five-minute span to open the second half, four shots including one on goal in the 58th minute for Ryan's first career save.
 
"We're really impressed and proud of how Jesse has grown," said Hess. "He's an awesome worker, he's a great keeper in training, but we know that injuries happen and we need to be prepared. He stepped up and has done everything we have asked with a smile on his face. Really pleased for him to come in and keep the clean sheet tonight which is important against a quality team like Colgate."
 
Natan Rosen had the Mountain Hawks first real chance of the game so far in the 69th minute with a shot that was saved by the Colgate keeper.
 
With a free kick opportunity following a Colgate foul, a ball found the head of Hassane Diakho, ricocheted to the foot of Dominic Flowers which found the back of the net to give the 1-0 lead to Lehigh in the 72nd minute.
 
"We honestly talk a lot about being opportunistic and making your own kind of luck a bit," Hess said. "Luck is a big part of this game, but also some good pressure that led up to that half was important. We asked the guys to step the line up a little bit and press a little bit higher. Some of that was just a by-product of that pressure and you get some confidence when the ball falls your way, that's the game, the margins are small.
 
"Hopefully we can learn about being opportunistic and create some of our own chances that way."
 
The Raiders went on a shooting frenzy, looking for some kind of separation, including a tough chance from Justin Weiss in the 80th minute that was saved in mid-air by Diakho. Colgate tallied the final seven shots of the match, but the Mountain Hawks held on for the one-goal win.
 
Colgate out-shot Lehigh, 14-10 throughout the evening including 11-6 in the second half. Colgate also led the way in corner kicks (5-1) and fouls (8-3).
 
After registering a career-high eight saves against Lafayette his last time out, Koski recorded three, while Ryan recorded two in his first career game.
 
Rosen led the Mountain Hawks with three shots, while Flowers and Austen Carranza each had a pair.
 
Lehigh has concluded the spring 2021 season with a victory and will turn its attention to preparing to make another Patriot League Championship run in Fall 2021.
 
"It's exciting because we finish off a competitive season that's a little different than a typical spring and we're going to turn around and have the guys back playing competitively a few months from now," said Hess. "So everything will be a little bit fresher, including the tactics. Guys should be a little bit more confident and have a better understanding of the roles and expectations.
 
"We're excited that we've gotten a chance to play this spring with games in a competitive setting that's unlike how it usually is."
 
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