On September 24, varsity boys soccer lost 2-1 against Urbana courtesy of a free-kick from midfielder Nick Narvaez late in the second half.

Urbana started out the game strong, possessing play throughout the first half, but Linganore’s defense answered. Hawk strikers were unable to beat the defensive line. Defender Luciano Iocco gave the ball away 20 minutes into the game to Urbana striker Ryan Herman in Linganore’s own half, allowing Herman to score on a one v. one against goalkeeper Braden Weinel.

Urbana would go on to dominate the rest of the first half with Linganore on the backfoot.

The narrative of the game changed in the second half as it seemed the two sides switched roles. Linganore controlled the ball for the majority of the game, forcing Urbana’s forward players to help out on defense. It wasn’t long before forward William Quansah’s equalizer was controversially ruled out by one of the assistant referees who decided Kojo Benefo, who assisted Quansah, had dribbled out of bounds before making the pass.

Despite the setback, Linganore’s intensity increased. Minutes later, forward Aidan Shaw bundled the ball past the goal line after a scramble in the box. Shaw believes the out-of-bounds ruling on the Quansah goal helped Linganore grow into the game.

“We didn’t believe the referee’s decision to disallow the goal was correct, but in a way, it helped us. The goal let us see we belonged in the game and it encouraged us to push on.”

From then on, Urbana was completely overwhelmed; Linganore grew in confidence but failed to capitalize on their opportunities. In the late minutes of the game, Shaw had another chance on goal from two yards out, but unfortunately couldn’t find the back of the net this time. Later on, Quansah blazed a volley just over the crossbar from about 16 yards out.

With about 15 minutes left in the match, the Lancers gave up an aggressive foul on the edge of the penalty box. Narvaez took responsibility for the free-kick and curled the ball into the top left corner out of the reach of Weinel. Linganore pushed for an equalizer, but it was too little too late. The game ended 2-1.

Linganore head coach Brian Johnson was disappointed with the result yet pleased with team effort in the second half. “This game was tough to take. We haven’t beat them [Urbana] in eight years and we had a real chance tonight. The shot from Narvaez was unstoppable, and there’s nothing we can do about that. Regardless of the score, I’m proud of how we fought back today.”

Linganore’s next game will be on Thursday, Septemeber 25 away against Thomas Johnson high school at 7:00 p.m. To see the rest of their schedule for the fall season visit linganoresoccer.org.