FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- A strong effort by the Fairfield men's soccer team was not rewarded by the final result but it was not lost on fans that witnessed another solid effort by the Stags in the home opener. Lafayette rallied with two goals to erase Fairfield's 2-1 advantage to  come away with a 3-2 decision at Lessing Field on Saturday night.

"I am proud of the way we fought tonight and hope we can get that spirit all season long," Head Coach Krystian Witkowski said. "It's about putting together a total performance but I can't be any prouder of these guys and what they were able to put on in front of our home crowd tonight. We need to fix a few second phase things that have plagued us early but we have shown over two games that our attack is more potent, This group has massive potential."

While Lafayette tried to establish momentum early in the match, the Leopards were consistently turned away by the play of goalkeeper Viktor Nikolov, who was kept busy through the first 12 minutes of the contest. The junior made two quality saves to keep Lafayette from gaining any ground, making stops in the 11th and 13th minutes. The visitors were finally able to complete a scoring chance in the 17th minute when Roy Biegon put the match's first goal on the scoreboard to push Lafayette in front.

The deficit did not last long for the Stags as they were awarded a free kick from the corner, giving a chance to Alex Oliveira who sent a precision cross to the center of the box. Thomas Drillien was able to rise above his defender and flick the ball with a header, tucking the shot just inside the far post in the 22nd minute. Seven minutes later, Devin Zachry collected his second goal of the young season, converting a scoring opportunity that started with a flick pass from Drillien to Owen Drummond who sent the ball over to the freshman. Zachry released a shot that was partially deflected by goalkeeper Eric Axtman but carried past him into the back of the net.

Carrying a 2-1 lead into the half, Fairfield continued to push forward and create opportunities in the opening minutes of the second half. Drillien was the center of the offensive effort, putting a pair of shots on target that forced Axtman to make his first saves of the night. The first shot came in 53rd minute, sending the goalkeeper to the ground to push away the ball. Two minutes later, Drillien found open space once again and put another shot toward goal that forced a diving stop to hold the lead at 2-1.

The Leopards became more active after Fairfield's offensive folly but once again Nikolov was able to quell any true threats through the middle of the half. Lafayette was able to find a way to in the 71st minute to tie the game on a crafty shot from Beaux Lizewski who accepted the ball from Biegon on the right side of the box and volleyed a shot to the far post. In the 77th minute, Lafayette had a terrific chance to take the lead when Cade Maglione had a point-blank shot at the Fairfield goal only to see Nikolov go from post to post to punch away a shot that was destined for the upper corner of the goal.

Unfortunately for the Stags, Lafayette netted what proved to be the game winner in the 80th minute as Biegon completed a pass from Lizewski by placing a shot into the top of the goal which pushed the Leopards in the lead at 3-2. The Stags tried to rally with a shot each from Zachry, Brett Sieg, and Jordan Blunschi but none of those attempts required any work from the goalkeeper.

Fairfield will return to the Lessing Field pitch on Wednesday, September 4 when the Stags host Stonehill at 7 pm.