BRONX, N.Y. – The Lehigh men's soccer team picked up a 2-1 nonconference road win over Fordham on Tuesday night on an 84th minute tally by Doyle Tuvesson. The Mountain Hawks took an early lead with a goal by Zarin Tuten in the 16th minute, but needed Tuvesson's late tally to lift the squad to victory.

Lehigh improves to 5-8-1 on the season and 4-4-1 in nonconference play. Fordham falls to 5-5-3 and 3-4-2 in nonconference play.

"I thought we had we had outstanding overall team effort tonight and our competiveness was where it needed to be," said head coach Dean Koski. "It was nice to get a goal and go up early and put the pressure on our opponent. We had a little lapse in the middle which led to their goal, but our guys hung in there and were able to execute late."

The Rams brought some early pressure, but the Mountain Hawks held tough and held the opposition to a few corner attempts and just one shot that went wide of the frame.

A Fordham foul in its own end led to a set piece opportunity for Lehigh. LU turned to its high-rising freshman defender Tuten who headed in a pass from Matt Morana on the service. Tuten has two tallies on the season in just six games, while Morana recorded his third assist of the season and his second to Tuten.

The Mountain Hawks poured on the offensive pressure from the 19th to 24th minute with four shots on goal and two corners. Fordham goalkeeper Jordan Black was up to the task as turned away all four of Lehigh's shots.

Lehigh had an unfortunate break midway through the first half as a foul set up a free kick chance for Fordham. Janos Loebe had the honors and made the most of the situation by finding twine from 48 yards out to tie the contest 1-1.

Fordham gave Lehigh a bit of a scare in the early stages of the second half with a header attempt off a corner, but the Mountain Hawk defense handled the situation and posted a team save to prevent falling into a deficit.

Both teams kept relatively quiet offensively throughout the second half. The game seemed destined for overtime as the clock eclipsed the 80th minute mark, but that scenario would change quickly. Giammatteo would find a crease to feed a pass to Tuvesson who then maneuvered into position and finished from eight yards out for the game-winner. It's the second goal of the season for Tuvesson and the first point of the season for Giammatteo.

Fordham countered with a chance in the 85th and 86th minutes, but keeper Will Smith was up to the challenge and made a pair of saves to preserve the win.

Smith made three saves to go with one team save on just five shots on goal, while his counterpart Black made seven saves on nine shots on goal.

Lehigh faces a critical stretch in the schedule with its next three games against teams all in the hunt for spots in the Patriot League postseason. The first challenge comes on Saturday with a home matchup with Boston University. Kickoff at the Ulrich Sports Complex is slated for 6 p.m.

Men's Soccer on Oct 22 vs Boston will be dedicated to Soccer Without Borders as the Lehigh team will also be wearing SWB shirts during the pregame! 
Soccer Without Borders uses soccer as a vehicle for positive change for refugee, asylee, and immigrant youth in the US and abroad. All donations from this game for the organization will be doubled by Positive Tracks, an organization that empowers teams across the country to turn miles of physical activity into doubled dollars.  Visit the Soccer Without Borders table on Oct 22 to learn more or donate any used soccer equipment at any Lehigh game. 

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