NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Two scores from Chris Thomas helped the Elon University men’s soccer team hold off the Lipscomb Bisons for a 3-2 win on Friday night, Sept. 7, in the Hyatt Place Select Invitational in Nashville, Tenn.
Elon improves to 2-1 with the victory, while Lipscomb falls to 1-4 with the setback.
Thomas put the Phoenix on the board in the fifth minute after striking his own deflection under a diving John Schnurbusch for the goal, giving Elon a 1-0 lead.
The maroon and gold extended its lead to 2-0 just minutes later after an own goal by the Bisons in the 20th minute of the first half.
Elon controlled the match in all facets in the opening stanza, taking 11 total shots (five on goal) and holding Lipscomb without a shot.
Lipscomb responded in the 52nd minute to cut Elon’s lead in half after Ethan Summers passed Zander El-Hindi for the score following a save by Elon goalie Nathan Dean to make it a 2-1 match. Dean played all 90 minutes between the posts and tallied two saves.
But Thomas struck again late, nailing a penalty kick behind Schnurbusch in the 82nd minute to give the Phoenix a 3-1 lead. Thomas has scored four goals this season and is the Southern Conference’s active leader with 34 during his career.
Lipscomb made it a one-goal game late with a score by Josue Chavez in the 88th minute, but Elon held off the Bisons over the final two minutes to secure the victory.
Elon ended the match with a 16-8 advantage in shots (7-4 shots on-goal) and a 4-3 edge in corners.
The Phoenix returns to action on Sunday, Sept. 9, at 1 p.m. versus Belmont.