On Sunday, Nov. 5, the Lindenwood men’s soccer team defeated the Chicago State Cougars at Edwardsville, Illinois by a score of 2-0, in their first game of the OVC men’s soccer tournament.
This season, the Lions have had a new coaching staff, as well as twenty new players. With that, the team has had to take a learning curve with one another. But as the Lions have adapted to each other all through, the season has gotten much stronger for them.
“It was difficult in the beginning getting chemistry and gelling together,” grad student defender Cameron Caldwell said. “I think as the season went on, we gelled a lot better, we found our identity a little bit, and it just helped us overall.”
The Lions finished the regular season with a 6-6-6 record. They won three games at home, with two losses, and three ties. As for on the road, the team won three games, with four losses, and three ties. According to junior forward Ethan Blake, as everyone has gotten to better know each other, the team has gained tremendous confidence, learned the season’s ups and downs, and plans to use all of those, competing against the remaining opponents in the OVC tournament.
“Defensively, we’ve been very very steady all season, and I think that’s definitely one of our biggest strengths,” junior forward Ethan Blake said. “Times were a little bit shaky offensively, but I think that’s also because chemistry’s a big thing, and we’ve started to get a lot better with it, as [it has] built up top.”
This has just been the second season for Lindenwood’s men’s soccer team, and Lindenwood as a whole in Division 1.
Like many of the other Lions on the men’s soccer team, Caldwell and Blake are not only new to Lindenwood but Division 1 soccer too. Division 1 athletics are more organized, more cutthroat, have smaller roster sizes, and more competitive player management. Since the start of the transition, the Lions have still been able to adapt to the changes, as well as learning to enjoy Division 1 a lot too.
Moving forward in the OVC tournament, Lindenwood is looking to win the tournament, and ultimately end the season on a high.
“[Our goals are] to show well, and prove to people that we can compete at this level,” Blake said. “I think we’ve shown that we’ve progressively gotten a lot better as the season’s gone [on], and I think we’re ready for the OVC tournament, and I think we’re going to do well. So I think everyone’s going into [the tournament] with a lot of energy and high hopes through it all.”
