NEW YORK — The Columbia football team fell to No. 7/8 Lehigh on Saturday afternoon at Robert K. Kraft Field. The Lions (1-3) trailed throughout and were unable to find rhythm offensively or slow down the Mountain Hawks' attack, who posted 437 yards of total offense on the day.

"Lehigh's a really quality football team," Patricia & Shepard Alexander Head Coach of Football Jon Poppe said. "That's an awesome team that is well coached, disciplined and everything we're trying to do here. We did some positive things in the second half, but not nearly enough in the first half."

Wide receiver Titus Evans recorded a career-best 111 receiving yards on six catches. He is the first Columbia receiver to eclipse the 100-yard mark this season. Defensively, safety Caleb Solomon registered 15 tackles, followed by cornerback Carter McCray and linebacker Jack Smiechowski, who each chipped in nine. 

Lehigh controlled the ground game with 196 yards and limited Columbia to only 39 yards. 

Lehigh set the tone from the jump, using a 12-play drive that lasted 5:38 and was capped by a 4-yard rush from Matt Machalik to give the Mountain Hawks control early.

In the second quarter, Lehigh doubled the lead, keyed by a 45-yard pass to wide receiver Geoffrey Jamiel to set up running back Luke Yoder's seven-yard rushing score to extend the lead to 14-0 with 12:27 left to play in the quarter. 

With the Mountain Hawks driving late in the first half, the Lions held Lehigh to a 38-yard field goal to make it 17-0 at the break.

A 63-yard connection to Jamiel stretched the score to 24-0 on the opening drive of the second half. It was the first passing touchdown the Lions' defense has allowed this season. After holding the Lions off the scoreboard again, Lehigh tacked on another touchdown before Columbia finally broke through.

Quarterback Xander Menapace, who made his first career start, found Evans for a 63-yard touchdown with 7:00 left in the third, marking the Lions' longest passing play of the season.

However, the Lions threw a pair of interceptions late, squandering scoring opportunities, as the Mountain Hawks came away with the win.     

"Our goal for next week is to make sure our game plan is sound and crisp and our guys can execute at a high level," said Poppe.
The Lions will host Penn next Saturday, October 18, on Homecoming, presented by Jag Physical Therapy. Kickoff is slated for 1:30 p.m. on ESPN+.

Tickets are available starting at $20. To purchase, click here or call 888-LIONS-11.

FOLLOW THE LIONS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For the latest on the Columbia football team, follow @CULionsFB on X, Instagram, on Facebook and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.

POSTGAME NOTES
- Saturday was the first matchup between the Lions and the Mountain Hawks since 2013, with Lehigh leading the series 13-5-1.
- Columbia has lost back-to-back games for the first time under Jon Poppe.
- First-year wide receiver Beckett Robinson recorded his first career reception, a 37-yard strike in the third quarter.
- Menapace finished 11-of-21 for 178 yards, starting in place of injured quarterbacks Chase Goodwin and Caleb Sanchez.
- Tommy Sleeman punted eight times, netting 42.9 yards per attempt, and pinning Lehigh inside the 20 twice.
- Columbia finished non-conference play under .500 for the first time for the first time in eight seasons.