Hickory, N.C. – The Coker Men's Soccer Team (7-7-2) advanced on penalty kicks, 7-6, over Lenoir-Rhyne (11-4-3) Tuesday in the opening round of the 2016 South Atlantic Conference Championships at the Moretz Sports – Athletic Complex.  The match officially ended in a 1-1 tie.

The sixth-seeded Cobras move on to face second-seeded Tusculum (14-3) in the semifinals on Friday night at Manchester Meadows in Rock Hill, S.C.  The Pioneers defeated Mars Hill, 3-2, at home tonight in the opening round.

Coker opened the scoring at the 12:53 mark of the first half when Aladdin Elfares (Hallsberg, SWEDEN) headed the ball in off a bounce right in front of the net.

Lenoir-Rhyne tied the score at one in the 24th minute when senior midfielder Mitch Botfield (Walsall, ENGLAND) put a ball right between the goalkeeper's legs off a pass from freshman forward Devi Ndrita (Wesley Chapel, Fla.), who was credited with the assist.

The match remained 1-1 after 110 minutes of action before the Cobras advanced to the semifinals on penalty kicks.  Both goalkeepers – Coker's Justin Walker (Port Saint Lucie, Fla.) and junior Zach King (Altamonte Springs, Fla.) – allowed just one goal to go along with seven saves.  Lenoir-Rhyne held a 23-14 advantage in shots taken.

Lenoir-Rhyne, ranked fifth in the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Poll, will wait and see if they advance to the national postseason tournament which will be announced within the next several days.