Sophomore Owen Keck delivered the lone goal of the match in the 38th minute and goalkeeper Daniel Hrenko and the defense made it stand up in the second half to give the Lee men’s soccer team its first victory of the season posting a 1-0 shutout at Embry-Riddle on Saturday evening.
Fellow sophomore Jared McWhorter set up the score and was credited with the assist for the Flames. Lee managed just five shots but made the most of its limited opportunities putting three on frame.
Daniel Hrenko and the Lee defense turned away a 13-shot barrage from the Eagles in keeping the clean sheet. Hrenko tallied three saves.
“This match was always going to be a really hard 90 minutes. It was our first weekend of the regular season, our second game in essentially two days, and Embry-Riddle did not play on Thursday,” noted head coach Derek Potteiger.
Olav Aamlid led the Eagles’ attack with three shots. G. Sigurbjornsson came away with a pair of saves while allowing the one goal.
“I knew the second half was simply going to be played on the strength of our will and I’m really proud of the guys for rallying together for each other. No question there were some very good individual performances but it was a team win tonight. We will look closely at the game and get better as we move forward but it’s a good sign this early on in the season when we can get a win like this one,” concluded Potteiger.
The Flames move to 1-1 on the year after earning the important region victory and will travel to Lincoln Memorial on Wednesday for a 3:30 p.m. clash to wrap up a three-game road trip to start the 2018 campaign. Lee’s home opener will take place next Saturday as it welcomes Bellarmine to town for a 5 p.m. kickoff.