BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Fordham put home a shot from distance in the 43rd minute to account for the game's only scoring as the Rams defeated the Lehigh women's soccer team, 1-0 on Sunday afternoon. The Mountain Hawks outshot Fordham 10-1 in the second half looking for the equalizer, finishing with a 13-6 edge for the game. Lehigh's best chance came in the 70th minute when Erin Keefe's free kick from near midfield trickled through the goalkeeper and appeared to be going in, but a Fordham defender cleared the ball out of harm's way.
 
"We can play good soccer, but we need to have more intent, we need more urgency and more intensity in the final third," said Lehigh head coach Eric Lambinus. "We need a little bit more purpose. I think we're settling for shots and settling for hopeful services. We created a number of chances, but there still isn't enough intent to score. We need someone to want to be that way."
 
Lehigh began the first half with the game's first two shots and three of the first five. In the 19th minute, senior Maggie Wadsworth was sprung towards goal. Near the top of the box, she got off a shot moments before she collided with Fordham goalkeeper Kelly LaMorte, but LaMorte did enough to deflect the ball away.
 
Just under five minutes later, Lehigh sophomore goalkeeper Miranda Royds made her first stop, marking the game's last shot for nearly 20 minutes. The next shot, from Fordham's Maura Holst, found the back of the net from distance, placed perfectly into the top left corner of the goal to give the Rams a 1-0 lead at 42:44.
 
Fordham's only second-half shot was a quality chance in the 56th minute as new Lehigh goalkeeper Sam Miller came out aggressively on Amanda Miller, getting a piece of the shot before sophomore Ally Friedman cleared the ball away.
 
From there, Lehigh fired the final nine shots of the game. Just moments after Keefe's free kick that nearly went in, junior Mary Casey had a tremendous opportunity from in-close on a centering feed, but the subsequent shot was saved by LaMorte. From that point on, Lehigh's three remains shots weren't on target as Fordham wrapped up the 1-0 win.
 
"Fordham is a great team. They worked hard, they were physical and they did a lot of really good things," said Lambinus. "I was impressed with the way they played, but I was also impressed with the way we reacted to it. We defended really well, We had a little lull at the end of the first half, which we shouldn't have because we're a fit team, we're a deep team and we should have been better. In the second half, we came out with an urgency and created a number of chances. We put good plays together, but we were too hopeful in the final third instead of being purposeful."
 
Along with the 13-6 shots advantage, Lehigh held an 8-0 edge in corner kicks. Royds finished with two saves while Miller had one. LaMorte recorded four for Fordham.
 
The Mountain Hawks remain home on Friday when they host Temple at 5 p.m. in the first game of a Lehigh soccer doubleheader. The men's team will host Binghamton at 8 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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