WINTER PARK, FL - The Lenoir-Rhyne men's soccer team fell 6-5 to No. 2 Rollins on Thursday night.
The 11 combined goals is the most in a season opener in program history, while the five goals from LR is their most in an opener since taking down Davis & Elkins 5-0 in 2007.
With LR up 3-2 in the first half, Rollins scored three consecutive goals ovre the next 12 minutes to go up 5-3. The Bears knotted things up at five but a goal from Rollins' Sebastian Alvarez won the game for the Tars in the 76th minute.
Oskar Dahlberg netted a brace for the Bears, scoring in the 19th and 33rd minutes.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: #2 Rollins 6, Lenoir-Rhyne 5
Records: Rollins (1-0), Lenoir-Rhyne (0-1)
Location: Cahall Sandspur Field
| Winter Park, Florida
STATS OF THE MATCH:
- Angelo Paparoupas opened the scoring for the Bears with a fantastic solo goal in the 17th minute.
- Oskar Dahlberg took advantage of a bad back pass from Rollins two minutes later to double the Bears' lead.
- Pablo Herrero scored a quick brace in the 24th and 25th minutes to tie the game up.
- Dahlberg scored his second of the game in the 33rd minute on a header off the pass from Maxime Wester.
- Rollins answered with two quick goals to take a 4-3 lead into the break.
- Despite the seven goals, the teams combined for just 10 shots in the first half.
- Rollins Pablo Herrero scored his fourth goal of the game to put the home side ahead 5-3 in the 49th minute.
- Xairo Villalon and Hector Taboada answered with two solo goals over the next 12 minutes to tie things up at 5-5.
- Rollins got the game winner from Sebastian Alvarez in the 76th minute.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- This was the first ever meeting between these two teams.
- Rollins finished last season as national runners-up.
- The 11 goals is the most combined goals in a game since Lenoir-Rhyne defeated Chowan 13-0 in 2009.
- Oskar Dahlberg's brace was the first of his career.
UP NEXT: Lenoir-Rhyne will travel to Melbourne, Florida, on Saturday to face off against No. 22 Florida Tech. Tech faces off against SAC foe Emory & Henry tonight.