HARROGATE, TENN. – Facing their second straight top 25 opponent, the Lincoln Memorial men's soccer team was up against another big challenge. They were up for the battle all game long, and gave tenth ranked Union University all that they could handle in a 0-0 draw.
 
"I'm proud of how hard our guys worked today. We asked them to bring consistent effort and they brought that, and then some," stated head coach Robert Spain. "The crowd was amazing today and our guys definitely fed off that energy from the LMU community."
 
Despite the 0-0 score, both offenses were in attack mode throughout the entire match. The Railsplitter defense was more than ready to fend off the Bulldog offense. Led by junior goalkeeper Robin Hermann, the LMU defense staved off eight Union shots in the first half, with Hermann saving four of them. The defensive unit employed the bend, but don't break game plan in the second half, as they gave up 12 shots to Union, but none of them found the back of the net. Hermann, the German native, saved four more shots in the half, including a couple of diving stops in front of the goal.
 
"On the field, any time you can secure a clean sheet, that's always the starting point, so the guys are happy to see that their collective work has paid off," Spain said following today's match.
 
Offensively, the Railsplitters were in attack mode early in the match. The offense put three shots on goal, but were unable to get one past the Bulldog goalkeeper. In the second half, the Railsplitters had their best chance to score, but freshman Arkin Ulusoy's shot was tipped just wide and hit off the side of the goal frame. LMU put up three shots in the overtime periods, with two of them on goal, but were still unable to get any to find the net.
 
Shanden Vergara, Will Arrowood and Pedro da Silva all attempted multiple shots to lead the offense, with the three of them combining to attempt four shots on goal.
 
The biggest defensive stretch for Lincoln Memorial came in the 57^th and 58^th minutes, as the defense staved off three Bulldog corner kicks and two shot attempts to keep the game scoreless. The Bulldogs threatened again in the last 10 minutes of the second half, as Union took three shots, but Hermann was able to keep the 10th ranked Bulldogs at bay. Overall, Hermann saved all nine shots on goal, and led the defense that stopped 23 total Union shots.  
 
"We have been very intentional in challenging the guys with the schedule, already testing ourselves against three top ranked teams, so I know the guys feel more than prepared to start SAC play this upcoming week," remarked Spain.
 
Up Next
The Railsplitters are back in action at home on Wednesday, as they open up SAC play against Tusculum. They will be the second game of a doubleheader following the women's game.
 
How to Follow
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Railsplitter soccer.