The Lindenwood Men's Soccer team (5-2-5, 2-0-2 OVC) took down UTRGV on Thursday night by a final score of 3-1. The Lions scored two goals in the first 26 minutes of the game and added a third goal early in the second half to move into sole possession of first place in the Ohio Valley Conference standings.
David Magalhaes opened the scoring for Lindenwood in the fourth minute of the first half, receiving an upfield pass from
Leland Gray before sending a shot past the Vaquero goalkeeper to give the Lions an early 1-0 lead. Later in the half, Lindenwood's defense forced a turnover that led to the team's second goal.
Luca Bartoni created the opportunity by forcing the turnover, allowing the ball to find
Eddy Mwanje. Mwanje then sent a pass across the pitch to
Thato Lekgetho, who found Mwanje making a run past the UTRGV defenders. Mwanje collected the return pass and quickly fired a shot past the goalkeeper into the lower left corner of the goal to extend the Lions' lead to 2-0. Defensively, Lindenwood limited UTRGV to just two shots in the opening half, while the Lions recorded five shots of their own, including two from Bartoni.
The Lions continued to attack early in the second half, scoring just three minutes after the break on Luke Neely's first goal of the season. Following a Vaquero foul just outside the box, Neely headed the free kick opportunity toward the goal. Although his initial attempt was saved, Neely capitalized on the rebound and buried the ball in the back of the net to extend Lindenwood's lead to 3-0.
UTRGV battled back in the final 15 minutes and found the back of the net in the 81st minute to cut the deficit to two, but Lindenwood held on to secure their second OVC win of the season and fifth overall in 2026. Quinn Closson finished the match with four saves, while the Lindenwood defense added a team save as the Lions recorded five total saves, all coming in the second half.
"It was great to get off to a good start tonight." said head coach Kris Bertsch. "Being able to get the second goal of the first half was huge for our momentum. We played 21 guys tonight which was huge for experience and I was very proud of the effort overall. It was a solid three points at home."
Lindenwood will conclude their four match homestand on Sunday afternoon when they host Western Illinois. Kick off from Steward Field at Hunter Stadium is set for 3 p.m. on ESPN+.Â
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