EASTON, Pa. – A pair of second half goals propelled Lafayette women's soccer to its first Patriot League victory, besting American, 2-1, on Saturday evening at Gummeson Grounds: Home of Mike Bourger '44 Field at Oaks Stadium.

The Leopards' recorded four shots in the first half, while the Eagles had one, but that proved to be enough for American to take a 1-0 lead going into the halftime break. In the 44^th minute, Avery Klingensmith blasted a one-time shot from 25 yards away after a pass from Phoebe Merrigan, to put the Eagles in front.

Lafayette ramped up its offensive intensity in the second half, recording 10 shots in the final 45 minutes of play. After several close opportunities, the Maroon and White equalized the score in the 81^st minute. Junior Nadia Zaffanella headed the ball into the goal after a shot by freshman Era Methoxha was deflected by the American keeper to Zaffanella, knotting the score at 1-1. The goal was the fourth of the season for Zaffanella and the 12th of her career, moving her into the top 10 for career goals (tied with Sue Falco and Jaclyn Giordano).

The Maroon and White were not done scoring. With just two minutes left in the match, the Leopards were awarded a corner after a shot by Methoxha. Sophomore Camryn Fitch triggered the corner, sending the ball into the box, where it was headed into the goal by senior Sofia Ruggiero for the  2-1 advantage. The goal was the first of the season for Ruggiero and the third of her career against the Eagles, as she scored two goals in last year's 3-0 Lafayette win in Washington, D.C.

The Leopards kept the Eagles off the scoreboard for the remaining two minutes of the match to secure the 2-1 victory. Lafayette ended the evening with 14 shots to the Eagles' one. Junior Catherine Apker played the full 90 minutes in goal as did American's keeper, Addison Romer (6 saves).

The Leopards next travel to central Pennsylvania to take on Bucknell at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.