Game #1
Lindenwood (0-0-0, 0-0-0 OVC)
at Milwaukee (0-0-0, 0-0-0 HL)
Match Information:
Date: Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024
Location: Milwaukee, Wis.
Venue: Engelmann Stadium
First Kick: 4:00 p.m. CT
All-Time Series: First Meeting
Live Stats: Stats
Live Video: ESPN+

Matchup
Lindenwood men's soccer opens up the 2024 regular season with a matchup against the Panthers of Milwaukee at Engelmann Stadium on Thursday, Aug. 22 at 4:00 p.m. CT. This marks the second season for head coach Kris Bertsch after a 7-7-6 record last season with an appearance in the OVC semifinals.

Thursday begins a stretch of eight non-conference games before the Lions partake in Ohio Valley Conference play. The Lions will host a total of three home non-conference games including a matchup on Sunday against UTRGV.

OVC Preseason Standings
The OVC released their yearly preseason standings last Thursday which saw Lindenwood finish fourth in the rankings. Defending OVC Champions SIUE was selected to win the conference after going 16-1-3 in 2023. OVC-affiliate members Liberty and Incarnate Word rounded out the top three.

John Gates was tabbed as an OVC Player to Watch for the Lions in his first season in St. Charles. The Loyola Chicago transfer played three seasons for the Ramblers appearing in 48 matches with 39 starts.

He is originally from St. Louis, Mo. where he attended the John Burroughs School. Gates has seven career goals and 12 assists. He made the Missouri Valley Conference All-Freshman team in 2021.

Returning Lions
Lindenwood returns a lot of their roster from the 2023 season including four all-conference selections. Ethan Blake was the Lions leading goal scorer with six which ranked sixth in the OVC. He was the lone OVC First-Team Selection for the Lions. Blake led the team in points with 14 (six goals, two assists) and shots on goal with 13.

Noe Bijou, Matteo Boasso and Enzo Gil were also selected to the OVC Second-Team last season. Bijou was a staple for the Lions defense leading the team in minutes played with 1770 and helped the Lions posted the second lowest goals allowed in the OVC (1.20 GA). Boasso was second on the team in goals last season with four posting a total of nine points. He appeared in 17 matches making 15 starts.

Gil was the Lions primary goalie in 2023 making 18 starts in net allowing 1.138 goals per contest which was the fourth fewest. He made 50 saves while allowing just 20 goals with a save percentage of 71.4%. Bijou, Boasso and Blake also made the All-OVC Newcomer Team.

Head Coach: Kris Bertsch
Bertsch enters his second season at the helm of Lindenwood men's soccer during the fall of 2024. He helped the Lions immediately improve from their first Division I season as he led them to a 7-7-6 record, a four match win improvement from the previous season.

Bertsch posted a 3-3-4 record in Ohio Valley Conference matches, good for fourth in the OVC. This marked the inaugural season for OVC men's soccer in 2023. Heading into the OVC quarterfinals match, Bertsch's squad defeated Chicago State 2-0 to advance to the semifinals before losing to eventual OVC champions SIUE.

During the season, Lindenwood was ranked four times in the United Soccer Coaches Top 10 Poll for the North Region. Through weeks 7-11, the Lions were ranked has high has nine. This also marked the first ever ranking for the program in the USC North Region Poll.

Up Next
Lindenwood will make their Hunter Stadium debut on Sunday, Aug. 25th at 1:00 p.m. CT when they host The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley for a Lindenwood soccer double header. Fans can stream Lindenwood's match on ESPN+ and follow along on our LiveStats page. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.