4. FOCUS: Lehigh's 91-year wait is over

• by Soccer America , Oct 26, 2006

It took 91 years, but Lehigh finally beat Penn State.

The Mountain Hawks, ranked No. 23 in the Soccer America Men's Top 25, came away with their first-ever victory over the Nittany Lions in a series that consists of 17 meetings and dates back to 1915.  Sophomore Adam Gazda scored in the second overtime to give Lehigh a 1-0 win at Penn State's Jeffrey Field.

The Mountain Hawks extended their unbeaten streak to 13 games and scoreless streak to 668 minutes. Senior Jim Morahan was again outstanding in goal, making several key stops.
 
"It was as big of a game that it was expected to be," said Lehigh coach Dean Koski.  "I think they were very good and clearly their win over Indiana last week shows that.  Obviously for us, it is a major milestone to achieve our 14th win."

Lehigh is having the best season ever. The Mountain Lions earned their 14th victory of the season with the win over Penn State, breaking the previous program record of 13 that was set in 1998.

Koski has been getting great play out of senior defenders Joe Verdi and John O'Reilly. Virginia transfer Jim Taranto leads the Mountain Hawks with seven goals.

Penn State, which has played one of the toughest schedules in the country, fell to 6-9-2. The Lions have played seven games against teams in this week's Top 25. Their only win came against Indiana (1-0) last Friday.