Men’s Soccer Hosts Liberty On Friday

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Game #16

Lindenwood (7-5-3, 3-2-2 OVC)

vs. Liberty University (7-5-1, 5-2 OVC)

Match Information:

Date: Friday, Oct. 25, 2024

Location: St. Charles, Missouri

Venue: Hunter Stadium

First Kick: 7:00 p.m. CT

All-Time Series: 1-0-0

Last Meeting: 2-1, Win

Live Stats: Stats

Matchup

Lindenwood men’s soccer makes their way back home, after a two-game trip to the south, to face off against the Flames of Liberty University. The Lions are looking to add another win since their meeting last October.

Sunday men’s soccer action took place against the University of the Incarnate Word where the game would end in a 2-2 tie. For the second season in a row, the Lions tied the Cardinals. Ethan Blake and Noe Bijou tallied goals for the Lions.

Liberty is coming off a 5-0 win against the Screamin Eagles from Southern Indiana. The Flames hosted Southern Indiana last Sunday in Lynchburg, Virginia. Standing on a 5-2 OVC record, the Flames sit one place above the Lions in conference standings.

Last Match Recap

Men’s soccer settled for a 2-2 draw on Sunday against fellow OVC member, University of the Incarnate Word. This would add on as the third tie this season and the second in a row in conference play.

The Lion’s offense was led by Ethan Blake and Noe Bijou with a goal each. Bijou struck first in the fourteenth minute for his first goal of the season. Ethan Blake added a seventh goal to his already impressive resume. Incarnate Word tacked on 8 shots on goals for the Cardinals in their effort to make a comeback.

Blake has now scored in three consecutive games for the Lions and currently sits in second place for goals in the OVC behind Liberty forward, Michael Huss. Huss and Blake also appear atop the points category in the first and second spots but are only separated by a mere point.

Lindenwood’s defense proved to be stellar throughout the first half of play. Incarnate Word, in an attempt at a heroic comeback, outshot the Lions 12-10 and slotted two goals in the second half.

Stats To Know

• Lindenwood averages 1.8 goals per game, the second-best in the OVC
• They are just one of four teams in the OVC to have a positive scoring margin (0.43), Lindenwood’s offense also has the second most corner kicks (77)
• Lindenwood’s 203 shots and 104 shots on goal are both the top mark in the OVC, they average 6.93 shots on goal per match
• Blake is second in points so far this season in the OVC with 21 averaging 1.40 per game
• Gates also ranks seventh in points this season with 13 averaging 0.87 per game
• Blake and Gates sit atop the OVC with seven assists each on the season.
• Gates is second this season in shots on goal per game averaging 1.13
• Gil’s four shutouts this season are the third most in the OVC, he has a save percentage of .701
• Lindenwood has scored two game-winning goals in the final two minutes of the season: Ethan Blake vs. Evansville and Jordan Matthews vs. Utah Tech

OVC Preseason Standings

The OVC released their yearly preseason standings earlier this offseason 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.

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. 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 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 hits the road for a final time this season on Thursday, Oct. 31st when they take on Eastern Illinois in Charleston, Ill. starting at 4:00 p.m. CT. For more information go to lindenwoodlions.com.

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