BETHLEHEM, Pa. - In a matchup of two regionally-ranked teams, Princeton used a goal midway through the second half to down the Lehigh women's soccer team, 1-0 on Tuesday evening. The Tigers were ranked No. 1 in the NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Rankings released earlier Tuesday while the Mountain Hawks came in at No. 9. Lehigh didn't allow a shot on goal until the second half, as the defense allowed just one goal against a Princeton team that scored at least two goals in seven of its first 11 games of the season.
 
"I'm not disappointed in our effort and I'm not disappointed in our performance, but the result is disappointing," said Lehigh head coach Eric Lambinus. "We created a bunch of good chances, which we could have finished. We had one pretty good letdown where we allowed their best player on the field to put it in the back of the net. We're disappointed that we had that little bit of a breakdown, but I'm not disappointed with the effort. I think we played some pretty good soccer at times."
 
The Tigers recorded the game's first shot, but the Mountain Hawks came back with a couple glittering opportunities. In the 12th minute, Sabrina Mertzmade a nifty cross to freshman Sidonie Warnecker at the far post, but her header went just wide. Just over a minute later, Mertz found junior Lexi Chang in front, but Chang's ensuing shot was saved by Princeton goalkeeper Natalie Grossi.
 
Lehigh earned another strong chance in the 17th minute as Mertz made a steal near midfield, fed ahead to senior Tori Pantaleo, who found Chang heading into the box, but Chang's shot went just wide right.
 
The Mountain Hawks were outshot 8-3 in the first half, but didn't allow a shot on goal as the game was scoreless after 45 minutes of play.
 
Princeton took a 1-0 lead midway through the second half. After the ball was played into the box, the Mountain Hawks were unable to clear and the ball found the foot of Mimi Asom, who beat freshman goalkeeper Sam Miller with a shot inside the left post.
 
One of Lehigh's best chances came in the final minute of regulation as Pantaleo set freshman Kayla Arestivo up near the top of the box, but the shot sailed high.
 
Final shots were 13-7 in favor of Princeton while the Tigers had four shots on goal to Lehigh's three. Princeton held a 6-1 edge in corner kicks. Miller and Grossi each finished with three saves in goal.
 
"Playing a really good team nonleague in the middle of the Patriot League allows us to try some things to get better," said Lambinus. "We tried some different combinations and some different formations at times tonight and at times, it worked. It's something we can put in our back pocket to use in another game when the opportunity presents itself. It also gives people an opportunity to play a different position to see if that would work for us. That's the purpose of this game, but again, we want to be able to do that and still win."
 
The Mountain Hawks return to Patriot League action the rest of the season as they next travel to Loyola on Saturday. Opening kickoff in Baltimore is set for 7 p.m.
 
Like Lehigh Women's Soccer on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for continued updates on the Mountain Hawks.

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