The Lancaster Bible College men's soccer team saw its 2018 season come to an end on Tuesday night, as the Chargers lost to sixth-seeded Judson (Ill.), 2-1 in the second game of pool play at the NCCAA Division I National Tournament in Kissimmee, Florida. The Chargers cap the season with a 12-10-1 overall record, while the Eagles improved to 11-7-1 overall, and will play top-seeded Southwestern Christian in their second game of pool play on Wednesday evening.
 
Game Recap: Judson put pressure on the Chargers from the opening whistle, as Lancaster Bible goalkeeper Jake Deterline made three saves in the opening 8:30 of the contest. The Eagles attack continued, and Nikola Mihalopoulos got Judson on the board at the 9:19 mark off a pass from Matheus Montes.
 
Lancaster Bible answered right back just over five minutes later, as sophomore Chad Tolson took a pass from junior Joel Hughes, and connected for his team-leading eighth goal of the season.  
 
Judson answered back 15 minutes later, as Luis Germano scored to restore the Eagles' one-goal lead. The teams played evenly over the final 15 minutes of the first half, and the Chargers trailed by one after 45 minutes of play.
 
Judson collected the first few scoring chances of the second half, as the Eagles posted four shots and two corner kicks over the first 20 minutes of the second half, but the Chargers' Trey Baughman had his shot saved at 67:25 as well, as the Chargers tried to mount an offensive charge of their own. Hughes had a corner kick with under 14 minutes to play, but Lancaster Bible couldn't convert, and could not crack the Judson defensive line in the final minutes.
 
By the Numbers: Judson led in shots, 11-2, including an 8-2 edge in shots on goal…Judson also led in corner kicks, 3-1…Deterline made six saves for the Chargers…The assist for Hughes was his fourth of the season, as he became the fourth player on the team with four assists or more this season.
 
The Coach Says: "This season is one to remember, not because we won titles, but because we were truly competing together every day, regardless of if it was training, conference games, non-conference games, whatever we were doing, the guys loved playing together," Lancaster Bible Head Coach Tom Ardt said. "We played the best two teams we've faced all season down here, and we did some really good things on both sides of the ball. Huge thanks to our administration for sending us down to represent the school, and I believe we did that well, despite not getting a win. This definitely helped fuel the fire for next season, and we'll get back at it soon."
 
Information Hodge Podge: This was the first-ever meeting between the two teams…This is the latest date any soccer team in Lancaster Bible history has ever played…This is the fifth straight season Lancaster Bible has won 10 or more games…Tolson increased his goal total by five from last season, and now has 11 goals for his career…Tolson led the team in goals, points, shots and shots on goal, and was tied for the team-lead with two game-winning goals…Dan Bewersdorff led the team with five assists, and was one of five players with double-digit points (Tolson, Jared Jordan, Hughes, Rama Mugisha)…The loss marks the end of Jordan and Anthony Gehman's careers, as the two helped the Chargers to the NEAC Playoffs in each of their four years, including three NEAC Final Four appearances.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible's non-traditional season, featuring practices and one day of competition will begin in late March or early April.