FARMVILLE, Va. - Lancers proud and Lancers true.
That school pride rang true on Saturday night at the Longwood Athletics Complex. With 9:10 remaining on the clock in the second half, a mass of Blue and White, both current and former players that donned the Longwood uniform celebrated near the corner flag.
A celebration that included the historic past of Lancer men's soccer and in the same joyous group, the exciting present and future as Longwood won its first Big South match of the season, 2-0, over USC Upstate.
The alumni night that recognized the historic past was punctuated by a pair of freshmen who shined with
Vicent Martinez and
Levon Saribekyan scoring in each half. Speaking of historic, junior
Brando Bedolla continued to author one of the best seasons in Lancer lore, assisting each goal to bring his national-leading total to nine.
The day featured the return of program alums and ended with Longwood moving to 6-3 on year. Among the alumni that returned to campus and honored at halftime was the 2000 Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference Championship team.
Just eight minutes into the match, Longwood struck first on Martinez's first career tally. Senior defender
Aristhid Kamdjin sent a cross to the top of the box, where Bedolla charged forward to hit a shot to the left post. It was blocked by an Upstate defender, but Martinez collected the rebound and finished into the upper part of the frame to give the home team a 1-0 lead.
Late in the opening half, it was the Longwood defense that shined. Freshman defender
Magnus Hansen cleared a USC Upstate (3-7, 1-1 Big South) free kick to the back post off the line in the 38th minute. Graduate student goalkeeper
Nicolas Pucci made back-to-back big saves each of the next two minutes, including stopping an Oscar Kelly break away chance. Pucci collected four saves on the night to pick up his first shutout as a Lancer.
A big blow in the game came just over two minutes before half. With Longwood setting up to take a corner kick, Upstate's Bennett Leitner was shown a red card following VAR review of contact prior to the corner. As a result, the Lancers played with a man advantage for the remainder of the match.
After outshooting the visitor, 8-3, in the second half, the Lancers put the game out of reach with Saribekyan's goal in the 76th minute. Following a Spartan turnover in the midfield, freshman
Steven Rivas sent a long pass to Bedolla up the left sideline to set him free. The junior striker drew an Upstate defender and the goalkeeper to his side before centering a pass to a wide-open Saribekyan for the goal. The tally tied Saribekyan for the team lead with five goals on the year.
Scoring Summary
8' | Longwood –
Vicent Martinez (
Brando Bedolla)
76' | Longwood –
Levon Saribekyan (
Steven Rivas/Bedolla)
Up Next
The Lancers return to action on the road at High Point on Saturday, Oct. 3. The match carries a 7:30 p.m. star time and will be broadcast on ESPN+
