VILLANOVA, Pa. – Men's Lacrosse was unable to come out with a win against Lehigh in Friday's afternoon contest. The Mountain Hawks defeated the Wildcats by a score of 10-7, helped by six unanswered goals.

Villanova got out to a hot start, scoring three goals in the first 5:04 of the opening period. Jake Melchionni made his way down the field and netted his second goal of the season. The LSM had a fantastic performance in this game as, in addition to the goal, he caused two turnovers and picked up seven ground balls.

Brady Dumont made his collegiate debut in style after a Luke Raymond score, picking up the Wildcat's third goal of the day to extend the lead to 3-0.

After two Lehigh goals, a man-up opportunity arose, which led to another Dumont goal, assisted by Quinton Cepiel.

Unassisted goals by Colin Michener and Nicholas Lucchesi helped fend off the Lehigh attack, who answered back every Wildcat goal in the second quarter to enter the break with a 6-5 lead.

For Lehigh, Andrew Kelly and Dakota Eierman led the offense, combining for five of the 10 goals. Luke Breslin added three assists as well during the 6-0 Lehigh run that spanned between the second and fourth quarter.

The Wildcats answered back on a Cepiel goal with 4:52 remaining in the contest, but it was not enough to make the comeback.

Villanova was able to take advantage of their penalty opportunities, scoring on four out of their seven during the game.

Richard Checo forced three turnovers and picked up six ground balls, as Kasey Heath stayed strong in the net, saving 16 shots.

Denis Fargione recorded his first career start, where he made eight saves and picked up four ground balls. The freshman held the Mountain Hawks under .500% on extra-man opportunities.

Tyler Sandoval had another fantastic day at the center X, going 9-15 (.600). He currently holds a season win rate of .623%.

UP NEXT 
Villanova Men's Lacrosse will return to action Tuesday, March 4, to take on the Drexel Dragons for a Rivalry Rewind matchup at 4:00 P.M.

TICKETING
Individual game tickets are available for the rest of the season; please check here for more information and to purchase tickets for upcoming games.

SOCIAL 
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