Game #10
Lindenwood (3-4-2, 0-1-0 OVC)
vs. Southern Indiana (1-7-0, 0-1-0 OVC)
Match Information:
Date: Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023
Location: St. Charles, Mo.
Venue: Hunter Stadium
First Kick: 1:00 p.m. CT
All-Time Series: 2-2-1, Tied
Last Meeting: 2-0, Lindenwood (10/23/2022)
Live Stats: Stats
Live Video: ESPN+

Matchup
Lindenwood men's soccer continues their start to the Ohio Valley Conference season as they host Southern Indiana at Hunter Stadium. Last season, both teams played in the Summit League with Lindenwood winning both matchups.

Earlier this week, the Lions lost to fellow OVC member Eastern Illinois in a close 2-1 match at EIU. The Lions were up 1-0 for the majority of the match before the Panthers scored two goals in the final eight minutes. Ethan Blake scored his second goal of the season in the loss.

The Ohio Valley Conference began their inaugural season of men's soccer as Lindenwood was picked to finish fourth out of eight teams. EIU was picked to finish in sixth.

Previous Match Recap
Lindenwood men's soccer dropped their opening Ohio Valley Conference match of the season against Eastern Illinois (2-4-2, 1-0-0) by a final score of 2-1. EIU scored their two goals in the final ten minutes of the match.

Lindenwood was the aggressor in the first half out shooting the Panthers four to two. LU also had three corner kicks in the first half compared to zero by Eastern Illinois.

Ethan Blake was the lone goal scorer in the match in the 26th minute of play off of a free kick which was caused by a foul of the Panthers. Blake netted his second goal of the season in the top left of the net against EIU's goalkeeper Joseph Whelan.

The second half was a different story as the Panthers pushed the pace late in the match as the posted four shots in the second half, two of them resulting in goals to ultimately seal the win for EIU.

Ashur Eshw (82nd minute) and Sam Eccles (88th minute) were the goal scorers for the Panthers as they notched their first OVC win of the season. Lindenwood and EIU were tied in shots with six each. Goalie Enzo Gil had two saves of the day.

Player Of The Week
Cole Hutson was named the Ohio Valley Conference's Offensive Player of the Week after his hat trick performance against UHSP last week. Hutson is the only OVC player this season to have three goals in a match.

Hutson currently leads the team in goals made with four and has 12 shots with seven of the on goal. With that weekly award, he becomes the first Lion to earn that achievement.

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 will travel across the river next week on Thursday, Oct. 5 at 7:30 p.m. as they take on SIUE in an OVC showdown. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.