ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Lindenwood men's soccer (7-5-1, 3-2-0 OVC) clinches their third Ohio Valley Conference win of the season after defeating Western Illinois (6-7-1, 1-4-0 OVC) by a final score of 1-0. The Lions tie the school Division I record in wins (7) and OVC wins (3).
"Conference matches are always tough," said head coach
Kris Bertsch. "It took 80 minutes to unlock them in a very difficult and tight game and I am very proud of the guys. We did enough good stuff to earn those three points."
Ethan Blake continued his dominance in OVC play to start his senior season scoring his team-high fifth goal. After his penalty goal on Sunday, he now leads the OVC in total points with 17. Blake also has seven assists on the season.
All three OVC wins for Lindenwood this season have been a shutout.
Enzo Gil has been in net for the Lions for all three of those wins including Sunday's match. Gil made three saves in net for the Lions during his 90 minutes of action.
Lindenwood's defense kept the Lions in this match after allowing just four total shots against the Leathernecks of Western Illinois.
Noe Bijou and
Mekhi Wright on defense played all 90 minutes in the shutout.
The first half had little offense with just three total shots taken, two of them by Lindenwood. Neither team made a save during the period as Western Illinois had three offsides to just two by the Lions.
Both teams' offenses started to pick up in the second half as Lindenwood had seven shots during the final 45 minutes including five on goal. The Lions' first opportunity to score came during the 57th minute after
Isaac Johnson had an angel on the right side of the box, but Joel McIntyre of WIU kicked the ball out right in front of the net.
Lindenwood's offense started to move the ball inside of the Leathernecks' zone when Blake was fouled during the 81st minute by Leevi Searengen to set up the PK kick. Blake scored in the top left of the net to give LU the game winning goal. He has now scored two penalty goals this season and has four game-winning goals for Lindenwood.
The Lions will be on the road next week as they travel to Houston, Texas to take on Houston Christian University on Thursday, Oct. 17th. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.
