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Lindenwood University Athletics

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Cameron Caldwell
Don Adams Jr.

Men's Soccer

Men's Soccer Travels East To Liberty On Thursday

Lions have posted back-to-back ties

Game #15
Lindenwood (5-4-5, 2-1-3 OVC)
at Liberty (8-4-1, 3-2-1 OVC)
Match Information:
Date: Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023
Location: Lynchburg, Va.
Venue: Osborne Stadium
First Kick: 6:00 p.m. CT
All-Time Series: First meeting
Last Meeting: First meeting
Live Stats: Stats
Live Video: ESPN+

Matchup
Lindenwood men's soccer hits the road for the second to last time this season as they play new Ohio Valley Conference men's soccer opponent Liberty on Thursday, Oct. 19 at 6:00 p.m. CT. The Lions are coming off a 1-1 draw at home against Incarnate Word.

Liberty in their first season as an OVC affiliate member is currently in third place in the conference with 10 points picking up three wins on the year in OVC play. In their last match, the Flames picked up a 1-1 draw against USI on Sunday.

The Ohio Valley Conference began their inaugural season of men's soccer as Lindenwood was picked to finish fourth out of eight teams. Liberty was selected as the preseason favorite entering the season with eight first place votes.

Previous Match Recap
Lindenwood men's soccer finished with a 1-1 draw on Sunday against the Cardinals of Incarnate Word after a wild final ten minutes of the match. IWU scored on an own goal with four minutes remaining to secure a tie vs. the Lions.

It was a defensive battle in the first 45 minutes of action with only one shot on goal (Ethan Blake). Lindenwood's defense held the Cardinals out of scoring position with just two total shots thanks to defenders Luke Neely and Noe Bijou.

The Lions' offense put the pressure on in the first half with six total shots with Blake's coming as the only one on goal. Both teams were getting after in early on with 11 fouls committed by IWU and the Lions committing six.

After no goals were scored the first 80 minutes of the match, Lindenwood struck first after a hand ball was called in the box by IWU. Blake took the penalty kick for LU in the 81st minute and scored his fourth goal of the season tying him for the team lead.

As the Lions went up 1-0, Incarnate Word was given a corner after a team save in the box. With the ball in the air one of Lindenwood's players hit the ball in the right corner of the net to score an own goal and tie the match at 1-1. That goal would secure a tie for both team and the third tie in the last four matches for Lindenwood.

Enzo Gil made three saves for the Lions and saved every shot on goal the Cardinals had. LU's offense had just two shots on goal both coming from Blake. The Lions finished with 12 shots on Sunday to just seven by IWU.

OVC Top Ten Rankings
With Blake's recent goal last week, the Lions have two top ten goal scorers in the OVC. Cole Hutson and Blake rank ninth and 10th in the conference with four goals each this season. Hutson has played 10 games this season, the least amount of games played of someone in the top ten.

Jens Haukeland continues his strong play ranking fourth in the OVC in assists with five. Hutson is also tied for second with two game winning goals this season and ranks ninth in points with eight.

Enzo Gil is still making strides as Lindenwood's primary goalie ranking third in goals against with an average of 1.075. His four shutouts are also second in the OVC. As a team, the Lions rank second in goals allowed with 15 on the year.

Head Coach: Kris Bertsch
Bertsch enters his first season as the head coach of Lindenwood men's soccer during the 2023 fall season. He comes to Lindenwood after spending five seasons at Saint Louis University as the top assistant coach where he helped guide the Billikens to an impressive 53-22-14 record.  Individually, Bertsch has been recognized as one of the Top Assistant Coaches in the country four different times. 

Saint Louis captured back-to-back Atlantic 10 Conference regular-season and tournament titles in 2021 and 2022, resulting in two-straight NCAA Men's Soccer Championship appearances.  In 2022, Bertsch and the SLU staff earned the honor as the NCAA Division I Southeast Region Staff of the Year by the United Soccer Coaches.

Up Next
The Lions return home on Sunday, Oct. 22 at 1:00 p.m. for a rematch against the Panthers of Eastern Illinois. Lindenwood lost a heart-breaker to EIU earlier in the season in Charleston, Ill. 2-1. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.
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Players Mentioned

Ethan Blake

#20 Ethan Blake

F
5' 9"
Junior
Enzo Gil

#1 Enzo Gil

GK
6' 0"
Freshman
Jens Haukeland

#11 Jens Haukeland

F
6' 2"
Freshman
Cole Hutson

#14 Cole Hutson

D
6' 4"
Senior
Luke Neely

#24 Luke Neely

D
6' 0"
Freshman
Noe Bijou

#15 Noe Bijou

D
6' 0"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Ethan Blake

#20 Ethan Blake

5' 9"
Junior
F
Enzo Gil

#1 Enzo Gil

6' 0"
Freshman
GK
Jens Haukeland

#11 Jens Haukeland

6' 2"
Freshman
F
Cole Hutson

#14 Cole Hutson

6' 4"
Senior
D
Luke Neely

#24 Luke Neely

6' 0"
Freshman
D
Noe Bijou

#15 Noe Bijou

6' 0"
Junior
D