CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Eastern Nazarene College freshman Andrew Nelson (Burtonsville, Md.) netted a goal in each half to power the offense as the Lions topped the Lynx 3-1 tonight at Edward Field. With the win, Eastern Nazarene moves to a perfect 2-0-0 on the season while the Lynx remain searching for their first victory as they fall to 0-2-0.
Nelson put the Lions on the board first in the 19th minute of play as he dribbled down the left sideline before ripping a shot from the left corner of the box passed the diving Chase Donley (Elizabethtown, Pa.) and into the right side of the net. The goal was his first of the season.
The Lions attack came on the counter of a great Lynx opportunity when sophomore Erik Johansen (West Harrison, N.Y.) entered on the right side of the box and launched a right-footed shot that tipped off the fingertips of Eastern Nazarene keeper Jake Johnson (Mount Bethel, Pa.) and then off the crossbar to keep the Lynx scoreless.
Eastern Nazarene quickly tacked on a second goal as sophomore Jacob Mason (Southport, England) found the back of the net for his second goal of the season off a feed from senior Scott Hansen (Middletown Springs, Vt.) to give the guests an early 2-0 advantage that would carry into overtime.
Nelson and the Lions wasted little time to add a third goal as the freshman midfielder connected for his second goal just one minute into the second half of play. Nelson streaked down the sideline and received a beautiful leading pass from freshman Omar Cruz (Gaithersburg, Md.) and beat the Lynx backline and the keeper to put Eastern Nazarene up by a score of 3-0.
Lesley finally put one on the board in the 79th minute when Johansen settled a corner kick from junior Ryan Richardson (Santa Barbara, Calif.) and blasted a shot into the right side of the net for his first tally of the season.
Despite outshooting the Lions by a 7-3 margin in the second half, the Lynx struggled to beat Johnson who was credited with four saves on the night.
The Lynx will return to action on Saturday, September 6th when they welcome Suffolk University to Cambridge for a 1:00p start. The Lions will also kickoff at 1:00p on Saturday when they travel to Clark University in a non-conference match.