ERIE, Pa. – The 14th-ranked Mercyhurst men's soccer team struggled to overcome an early 2-0 deficit and lost 3-1 to West Chester Saturday afternoon at Mercyhurst Soccer Field.
 
The Lakers' (3-2-0) loss was their first in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) in their last 12 conference matchups. Their last conference defeat came also came to West Chester last season on Sept. 9.
 
Two Mercyhurst mistakes early resulted in Golden Rams' goals. The first came in the seventh minute when Andrew Slater was left unmarked in the box to corral a bouncing ball and score. The second blunder was a turnover on the offensive side of the pitch that left a full-field breakaway for Doug Goitia in the 12^th minute.
 
The Lakers ended up with 20 shots to West Chester's 14 in the game, but the Lakers only had four attempts on goal compared to nine for their opponents.
 
In the second half, West Chester extended its lead to three off a corner kick in the 84^th minute. Mercyhurst was able to break the shutout in the 90^th minute after a Christopher Makengo penalty kick following a WC handball in the penalty area.
 
Eight total yellow cards were handed out for the game with four going to each team.
 
The Lakers look to bounce back on Tuesday, Sept. 19 when they travel to Ohio Valley for a non-conference matchup starting at 3:30 p.m.