The Ocean City Nor'easters late comeback attempt fell short in a 2-1 road loss to Lehigh Valley United.  Despite a late goal from Fredlin "Fredinho" Mompremier, two early first half goals for the hosts were just too much for the Nor'easters.

In a match that was deadlocked at halftime, either team could have taken all three points.  Both teams had promising spells of play in the first half but it remained scoreless going into the break.

Lehigh Valley did not waste time in the second half, scoring a goal in the 49th minute through Jordan Poarch.  Poarch cut through two defenders and put the ball past Todd Morton. It was their best chance of the day so far and they did not waste it.

Just five minutes later, Seiji Rose scored directly from a free kick to put Lehigh up 2-0.  Rose took the free kick 3 yards away from the corner of the penalty area. He sent in an in-swinger towards the far post as a cross/shot hybrid and it bounced off the post and dribbled in.  10 minutes into the second half, the entire complexion of the match had changed.

The injury-riddled Nor'easters had an uphill battle to climb.  In the 83rd minute, Fredinho pulled one back to try and kick start some sort of comeback.  He played some intricate give-and-go passes back and forth with Ismael Noumansana leading up to this goal.  Noumansana played a well-timed through ball to his striking partner, who was able to get past two defenders before firing a shot into the top left corner.  This goal gave Ocean City a bit of life.

In the 86th minute, the Nor'easters were inches away from an equalizer after a great strike from Noumansana.  He already grabbed an assist three minutes prior but came just short in nicking a goal and a point for his team.  Noumansana had a go from 25 yards out that smashed off the crossbar. This is not the first time that Ocean City has hit the woodwork in a comeback attempt this season.  Against the New York Red Bulls U23s, they managed to hit either the crossbar or the post four times in a 15-minute span before falling short.

This is the first time that Lehigh Valley has defeated Ocean City in what was their fifth all-time meeting.

The Nor'easters (5-3-0) will look to bounce back on Saturday, June 17 when they travel to Virginia to take on the Evergreen Hammers, who they have already beaten twice this season. The first win was the season opener in which the Nor'easters dominated with a 4-1 victory.  The second win occurred when Ocean City scored three goals in the final six minutes to complete a famous comeback win with a final score of 3-2.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Evergreen Sportsplex in Leesburg, Va.