ROCK HILL, S.C. – The fifth-seeded Railsplitters (11-6) look to return to the title game of the South Atlantic Conference Men's Soccer Championship for the first time since 2012 on Friday at 5 p.m. when they battle the eight-seeded Brevard Tornados (8-8-1) in semifinal round action at Manchester Meadows in Rock Hill, S.C. Lincoln Memorial took down fourth-seeded Catawba 2-1 on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals, while Brevard handed No. 1 nationally-ranked Wingate its first loss of the season to book a trip to Rock Hill.
 
Schedule/Game Day Links


Friday, November 4 vs. Brevard, SAC Championship semifinals (5pm) Live Stats / Video
 
Notes on the Railsplitters:
 
-Three days after dropping a 2-1 decision at Catawba in the regular-season finale, which forced the Railsplitters to go back to Salisbury, N.C. for the SAC Championship quarterfinals, Lincoln Memorial returned the favor with a 2-1 win over the Indians on Tuesday night. Catawba took the lead in the ninth minute, but Victor Peres (Brasilia, Brazil) drew the match even on a penalty kick in the 30th minute and George Burne (Carlisle, England) scored the eventual game winner in the 58th minute.
 
-Lincoln Memorial is heading to the semifinals of the SAC Tournament for the fourth time in the past five seasons, but the Railsplitters will be vying for just their third-ever appearance in the championship match. LMU won the 2007 SAC Tournament in its first year in the league and lost in the title match in 2012.
 
-The Railsplitters had six players earn All-SAC laurels, as Danilo da Silva (Campinas, Brazil) was named to the All-SAC first team, Victor Peres (Brasilia, Brazil) landed on the second team, and George Burne (Carlisle, England), Hisham Abdelaziz (Alexandria, Egypt), Henrique Rezek (Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil) and Ronaldo de Jesus (Campinas, Brazil) received honorable mention accolades. Only Wingate and Tusculum had more All-SAC selections than Lincoln Memorial with seven apiece.
 
-Peres extended his point streak to eight games in Tuesday's SAC quarterfinal win at Catawba with his penalty kick goal in the 30th minute. Dating back to October 5, Peres has racked up six goals and two assists over an eight-game span to drive his season point total to 21.
 
-The Railsplitters' 2015 season ended in the SAC Championship semifinals in heartbreaking fashion. Lincoln Memorial and Wingate played to a 0-0 draw through regulation and two 10-minute overtime periods, but the Bulldogs advanced to the title game via a penalty-kick shootout.
 
-With a win on Friday, the Railsplitters would advance to the SAC Championship title game to face the winner of No. 2 Tusculum and No. 6 Coker on Sunday at 4 p.m.
 
Notes on the Tornados:
 
-Brevard's miraculous run continued on Tuesday night, as the Tornados stunned the No. 1 nationally-ranked and top-seeded Wingate Bulldogs 1-0 to advance to the SAC Championship semifinals for the first time in program history. Not only is Brevard going to the second round of the SAC Tournament for the first time ever, but the Tornados are making just their second appearance in the league tournament since joining the SAC in 2008.
 
-The Tornados qualified for the SAC Championship by the slimmest of margins, defeating both Carson-Newman and Queens to edge the ninth-place Royals by two points and nab the No. 8 seed. Brevard's 4-7 SAC record disguises the fact that the Tornados are a solid all-around unit, as five of their seven conference losses were decided by a single goal, including four 1-0 setbacks.
 
-Brevard found a way to pull off one of the biggest upsets in recent memory despite seeing Wingate muster a 24-6 advantage in shot attempts and a 7-3 edge in shots on goal. Heath Turner saved all seven of the Bulldogs' shots on goal to record his first shutout of the season, while Gabriel Garcia tallied the game winner in the sixth minute to power the victory.
 
-Offense has come at a premium for the Tornados this season, as they rank eighth in the 12-team SAC in shots per game (14.0) and seventh in goals scored (26). Against SAC opponents, Brevard has tallied a mere 11 goals and been blanked five times. Brevard has been better of late, though, scoring five goals over its last three appearances on the pitch.
 
-Sixteen different players have tallied at least one point for the Tornados this season, but none have more than 11. Garcia and Tyler Nelson lead Brevard with five goals and one assist apiece, while Camilo Sosa has three goals and three assists. Gabriel Pastrana is ranked second on the team with four goals.
 
-Brevard had two players named to the All-SAC team, as Nelson and forward Ryan McPhillips were selected to the All-SAC honorable mention squad. McPhillips has two assists on 23 shots this season.
 
Series History:
 
-The Railsplitters are 10-2 all-time against Brevard and have won the last eight meetings. Over that span, Lincoln Memorial has outscored the Tornados by a combined margin of 23-3.
 
-LMU defeated the Tornados 2-0 in this year's regular-season meeting on September 14 at the LMU Soccer Complex. Silva scored the only two goals of the match, tallying in the 30th and 67th minutes to power the victory.
 
-The Railsplitters haven't surrendered a goal to Brevard since 2014, as they beat the Tornados 1-0 in 2015 and 2-0 earlier this season. During its current eight-match winning streak against Brevard, Lincoln Memorial has shutout the Tornados five times.