WASHINGTON - A three-goal breakout in the second half gave the American University men's soccer team a 3-1 win over Patriot League-leading Lehigh on Saturday afternoon at Reeves Field. Mustapha Sowe, Taku Takahashi, and Kobe Keomany all found the back of the net, leading the Eagles to a win that puts them in a tie for first place in the conference. 

Notable 

• Sowe netted his third goal of the season to tie Troy Elgersma for the team lead, while Takahashi and Keomany put their first in. It was the sophomore Keomany's first career goal.
• Sebastian Garces continues to produce in the attacking third for AU, notching two assists to bring his team-leading total to four on the year. He picked up the helper on Sowe's goal and Takahashi's. Chris Sullivan delivered the assist on Keomany's goal, his second of the season. 
• Matthew Tibbetts made five saves in the match, making two challenging stops in the first half to keep the score level. 
• AU tied a season-high with five shots on goal, taking 10 tries overall.
• The Eagles leapfrogged Lehigh with the win, and are now tied for first place in the Patriot League with BU. Both teams are 4-1 with 12 points. 
• American is 5-6-1 overall, and the team is undefeated at home with a 4-0-1 record. 
• There are five games remaining on AU's schedule, four in Patriot League play.

How it Happened

• Tibbetts was excellent in goal for the Eagles in the first half, making three of his four saves to stymie a Lehigh attack that came out of the gate in threatening form. 
• Eight minutes in, Thomas Robertson got loose in transition and put a left footed shot on target from inside the box, but Tibbetts did well to charge off his line and deny the shot with his left foot. 
• In the 33^rd minute, Tibbetts remained composed on another Lehigh scoring chance. He bursted off his line again to cut off the angle on a shot from Yusef Gueye, who had chased down a long ball into the box. Using his right foot to make the stop, it was his second sliding kick save of the day. 
• AU began to create more in Lehigh's third late in the half, producing three looks for Nicholas Beil in the final three minutes. The freshman striker came off the bench and challenged the visiting back line, most dangerously putting a header just over the crossbar. 
• American got off to a much stronger start in the second half, with Sowe opening the goal scoring floodgates four minutes in. After Troy Elgersma won a loose ball back to AU in the attacking third, Garces touched the ball forward to Sowe. The graduate senior striker took a touch to get the ball to his left foot, then buried his shot to the bottom left corner. A wonderful display of skill from both players to give the home side the lead. 
• The Eagles kept cracking away at Lehigh's defense, as Reyes Parra put a free kick off the left post, then Takahashi found the back of the net less than 10 minutes after Sowe's goal. 
• Taking space on a buildup in Lehigh's half, Takahashi fed Garces toward the end line on the left side of the box. Garces turned and made a pass on one touch back to Takahashi, who blasted a one-timed shot off the crossbar and in, finishing off a brilliant connection. 
• Lehigh had a response down the stretch, as Aiden Gonzalez scored with 13 minutes remaining. The ball was kicked out to Gonzalez just outside the box after a corner kick, and he floated a shot through traffic that beat a Tibbetts on the right side. 
• Just after the Mountain Hawks found a lifeline and made it a one-goal deficit, American delivered the final blow.  On free kick from the left flank in the 81st minute, Chris Sullivan delivered a gorgeous ball in the box that was headed in by Keomany at the back post to give AU a 3-1 lead. 

Up Next

• The Eagles will play their final non-conference match of the season on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at #4 West Virginia. AU will return home on Sunday for Senior Day against BU. 

Keep up With Us

• For the latest on American University men's soccer and to receive in-game upudates, stay tuned to AUEagles.com and follow the team on X (@AU_MSoccer) and Instagram (@au.msoccer).