Playing in front of its home crowd for the first time this season the Lee men’s soccer team gave the packed crowd plenty to cheer about in a 3-0 blanking of Bellarmine University on a hot and muggy Saturday evening at the Lee Soccer Field.
Freshman Aidan Moore made the most of his first match on the home pitch as he delivered two goals in the convincing victory while transfer Palle Jespersen assisted on all three goals.
Jespersen helped get the Flames get going as he sprinted down the right wing and delivered a dart into Owen Keck who knocked it past the keeper for his second goal of the season to get the Flames on board at the 32:06 mark.
In the second half Moore connected on his first collegiate as he flipped in a shot set up off a header from Drew Jackson. Palle Jespersen delivered a beautiful ball into Jackson to set up the score. Both players were credited with the assist. Junior Matt Chartier dodged a defender to start the run up to Jespersen.
Moore put the sprinkles on the ice cream with a laser shot into the top left corner of net to make it 3-0 Flames.
“He (Moore) is just a pure goal scorer,” said head coach Derek Potteiger. “You could see the excitement and passion he displayed after that second goal. Palle is a veteran player who knows how to make the right play and put himself in the right position.”
Daniel Hrenko turned away a barrage of shots and was credited with four saves in keeping his second clean sheet of the year. The Lee defense of Jake Brown, Jonah Brown and Samir Williams played all 90 minutes to keep the Knights off the scoreboard.
“I thought our defense was very solid tonight,” added Potteiger. “We knew Bellarmine was going to be aggressive and at times they made it difficult for us to get and keep possession but I thought we were patient and knew we could find some gaps. Up until this point I thought we played pretty well we just needed to see the ball go in the net and tonight it did.”
The Knights outshot the Flames, 14-10 with Lee holding a 5-4 advantage in shots on target.
Bellarmine Keeper Connor Range tallied a pair of saves in the losing effort. The Knights had 10 different players attempt a shot in the contest.
Lee improves to 2-1-1 on the year while Bellarmine falls to 1-2.
The Flames will get their final tune-up before entering conference play on Tuesday as they host Young Harris College at 7 p.m.
A heart-breaking loss best describes the Lee women soccer team’s non-conference battle against visiting Carson-Newman College on the Lee Soccer Field on Saturday evening. The Eagles converted the golden goal two minutes deep into the overtime period to capture the hard-fought 3-2 victory.
To the disappointment of no one, the two Division II heavyweights staged a furious battle. The win gave the Eagles program their 300th victory. They also avoided a fourth straight defeat at the hands of the Lady Flames and evened the series at three games apiece.
Carson-Newman jumped on top (4:24)when Emlee Futelli picked up a loose ball inside the box for the score. It was her fourth goal of the year. The Lady Flames got the equalizer on Mia Hollingsworth’s tally (6:03). It was her fourth score and the unassisted tally came on a hard strike from the near corner.
The Eagles regained the lead in the first half (28:42) when Kennedy Rankin drilled a one-timer inside the box off a touch pass. The assists were registered by Magda Mosengo and Elena Propst.
“Hats off to Carson-Newman, they were the better team in the first half and deservedly led at halftime,” stated Lee head coach Chris Hennessey. “The effort and intensity was more like us in the second half. We showed tremendous character, but against a good team like Carson-Newman, you can't afford to have a half like we had in the first.”
With the clock ticking down in the second half, Riley Engels recorded her first goal of the year to tie the thriller at two with just over six minutes remaining. Hollingsworth picked up the assist.
The visitors reacted quickly in overtime (92:33). Rankin snuck her shot into the far corner from the near right wing. The win evened Carson-Newman’s record at 2-2 while the Lady Flames dropped to 2-1-1 on the year. They will return to action on Wednesday when they play host to Emmanuel College (6 p.m.). “We now have some time to catch our breath again and get ready for Wednesday,” the coach added.
The Eagles outshot Lee 17-7 and placed eight of their shots on target. Lee had five shots on frame. Lee keeper Taylor Green was outstanding in the second half and finished the contest with five saves. Jackie Burns had two saves in registering the win. The visitors had five corner kicks and Lee four. “Taylor came up with some wonderful saves for us tonight and kept us in the game,” praised Hennessey.