Host Young Harris College put three scores on the board in the opening half and then played defense for the final 45 minutes in handing the Lee men's soccer team a 3-1 defeat on Wednesday evening. The loss dropped the Flames to 1-2 on the year and the Mountain Lions scored their first victory of the season after dropping a couple of matches over the weekend in Florida.
Young Harris wasted little time in getting on the board when Carlos Gomez posted an unassisted goal just seven minutes deep into the contest.
Gomez came back with his second goal in the 22nd minute on an assist from Josh Poole. The Mountain Lions took a 3-0 margin into the locker room at halftime when Mike Rowe tallied with just over one minute left before the break. James Thomas got the assist.
Lee's only score came in the 72nd minute when David Perez was awarded a penalty kick. The Mountain Lions, a member of the Peach Belt Conference, recorded 17 shots and placed 17 on goal. The Flames registered seven shots and had three on net. Tristen Putnam had four saves for the Flames, while Young Harris' Anton Viden came away with a pair of saves.
The Flames will look to get back in the winning column on Saturday evening when they host Tusculum College in a 7 p.m. kickoff at the Lee Soccer Field.