LC Soccer Wins First NAIA Contest

[August 29, 2018] 

The Lincoln College Men’s Soccer team made their program’s debut as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) a memorable one by defeating the University of St. Francis 3-0 at home on Monday.

Saint Francis dominated first half of play taking nine shots on goal as compared to only four by Lincoln in the first period. However, neither team was able to find the back of the net, which resulted in a 0-0 score at halftime.

The first half result gave Lincoln a confidence boost and the Lynx came out in the second half with renewed energy. Lincoln increased their pressure on offense which paid off in the 69th minute when sophomore Ignacio Ximenez scored the first ever NAIA goal in program history. Ximenez received a pass from David Jacome (Ecuador) then drove a 25 yard blast into the upper right hand corner of the goal to give his team a 1-0 lead.

Junior Adrian Roman (Waukegan) would add a second goal just four minutes later. Roman scored after junior Bryan Orellana (Chicago) played a curled ball off the outside of his foot to Roman who sprinted past the last defender and then guided the ball into the far post.

Adrian Roman would put the game out of reach for USF in 82nd minute when he took a penalty kick. The PK attempt was denied by the USF goalie, but Roman managed to gather the rebound and slot it home to put Lincoln up 3-0.

LC Coach Ben Massena had high praise for his team’s effort. “Our guys worked their tails off from start to finish,” said Massena. “Goalie, Pierson Fleming (Springfield), came up big time for us several times to preserve the shutout and defender Peter Ukaegbe (Chicago) was all over the field today. It was a wonderful way to start our season and our career as an NAIA program” he added.

Lincoln (1-0) will look to pick up another win at home on Wednesday when they host St. Ambrose University at 3:00 PM.

[Mark Tippett
Lincoln College
Sports Information]