EASTON, Pa. – The Lafayette men's lacrosse team clawed back from a 13-4 halftime deficit to pull within four against No. 7/8 Lehigh on Friday night at Fisher Stadium, but the Leopards couldn't complete the comeback in an 18-11 defeat.
 
The Maroon and White won the third quarter, scoring three goals and surrendering just one tally after giving up seven and six in the opening two periods. Each side netted four in the fourth as Lehigh answered a six-goal Lafayette run to start the second stanza with four over a four-minute stretch late to close it out.
 
The loss drops Lafayette to 0-8 on the year overall, while the Mountain Hawks remain undefeated at 7-0.
 
Freshman Kalman Kraham led three multi-goal scorers on the night for the Leopards with his first career hat trick, joining two goals and an assist from classmate Carter Cecil and a pair of goals from rookie Peter Lehman. Pole Sean Rushton added a goal and an assist on the night in transition, while freshman Charlie Cunniffe chipped in with a goal and an assist as well.
 
Junior Ryan Ness made 15 saves between the pipes in all 60 minutes of action. His counterpart for Lehigh, James Spence, stopped 12 Leopard scoring chances for the win, his seventh.
 
The Leopards converted on two of their three extra-man opportunities and committed just seven turnovers on the night, forcing 13 from the visitors. Shots finished at 47-33 in favor of Lehigh and the Mountain Hawks held the edge in ground balls, 45-26.
 
The two teams match up again on Sunday in Bethlehem at 12 p.m., a game that can be seen nationally on CBS Sports Network.