Bethlehem, PA - Pablo DeCastro (Madrid, Spain) and Aaron Gabriel (Louisville, KY) each scored a goal in their Rider debuts, but the Rider University men's soccer team lost its season opener on the road to Lehigh, 3-2.

Sophomore back Emmanuel Kouma (Paris, France/University of Paris) served senior forward and 2017 MAAC Preseason Player of the Year Jose Aguinaga (Madrid, Spain) a pass to the outside wing, which was served into the box for DeCastro's first goal as a Bronc in just the sixth minute to give the Broncs a quick 1-0 lead. From there, Mark Forrest of Lehigh scored an unanswered hat trick in just 52 minutes. He started by converting a penalty in the 18th minute, finishing a free kick from distance in the 35th minute, and obtaining the hat trick in a similar matter that DeCastro converted on in the 70th minute. Forrest has been Lehigh's top goal scorer in each of his two prior seasons of eligibility.

In response, Gabriel was subbed into the game and immediately sunk the ball into the back of the net in the 72nd minute to cut the Lehigh lead to 3-2 for the final score.

Quotes and Notes
"We played a poor first half and gifted Lehigh their first two goals. We pressed them in the second half and Gabriel came right in and scored a good goal."

"We're a young team that lost a lot and we're still building chemistry. It's going to take time to develop, but that's no excuse."  - Rider Head Coach Charlie Inverso

- The Broncs are now 3-4 in season openers under Head Coach Charlie Inverso, breaking a two-year winning streak against Saint Joseph's in 2015 and Villanova in 2016.
- The Broncs out-shot Lehigh, 12-11, in this up-and-down affair, with Lehigh owning a 7-4 advantage in shots on goal.
- Senior David Pastuna (Robbinsville, NJ/Robbinsville) made his return as the starting goalkeeper for the Broncs, a role which he had held from 2013 into the 2015 seasons. Pastuna had four saves against 10 total shots faced.

Broncs By The Numbers
- Four Broncs made their collegiate debuts: Mathis Catanzaro (Montpellier, France/MHSC), Sylvain Coco (Nimes, France/University of Montpellier), and the goalscorers DeCastro and Gabriel (as a substitute).
- Only one substitute came off of the bench for Rider (Gabriel), marking the fewest in one game in at least the past three seasons.
- Both teams managed five corner kicks in the game, but Rider had a 2-1 upswing in the second half.