It was a tale of two halves Monday night at Harlen C. Hunter Stadium for the men's soccer home opener.

In front of a good crowd the Lions jumped out to a 1-0 lead thanks to an unassisted goal by John Murphy. Lion goalie Victor Francoz kept the lead in the first half for the Lions stopping three shots, including a point blank try by Columbia.

The first half was won by the Lions but the second half was a different story. In the 56th minute Columbia would get on the board when Ross Matthew snuck one by Francoz. The game would not be tied for long, four minutes later after a scramble in front of the net the Cougars' Tim Tevlin buried a shot that had deflected off the cross bar. That was all Columbia needed as they played a very defensive game the rest of the way.

In the final 10 minutes the Lions had a couple opportunities but just couldn't get the game-tying goal. With the loss the Lions fell to 0-3 and Columbia improved to 2-1.

Next up for the Lions is a weekend trip to Quincy, Illinois where they will take on Quincy and Christian Brothers. They next home game for the Lions will not be until September 18th against Harris-Stowe.