ROMEOVILLE, IL – Lewis University topped the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) men's soccer team in a 2-1 victory during Sunday's Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) quarterfinal.
 
The third-seeded Flyers (12-4-1) took a two-score lead in the first half and the sixth-seeded Prairie Stars (8-8-1) were unable to recover.
 
"It was a difficult match," UIS coach Adam Hall said. "It was a good contest with both sides having chances."
 
Lewis managed to draw a handball foul inside the box during the 19th minute.  John Horstman took the shot and put the Flyers on the board.
 
During the 34th minute, Javier Milla served a corner kick. Jack Coombes put a header at the upper-center part of the net, but Lewis goalkeeper Philip Huang collected the save.
 
One minute later, the Flyers took a 2-0 lead after Nico Mueller made a sliding redirect off a right-baseline pass from Edgar Garcia.
 
During the 37th minute, Harry Hiscock served a pass to Steven Albers. Albers made a touch pass to Fernando Sanz de Galdeano, who converted the finish and the cut the deficit into half. Hiscock and Albers were credited with assists. Albers recorded the first assist of his career.
 
"After Lewis took a two-score lead, it made it difficult for us to come back. We did find a way to score and make it 2-1."
 
Timm Adler had a shot 53 minutes into the match that was just left of the net for the Flyers. Two minutes later, Konrad Malinowski fired a header that hit the top of the crossbar. Sixty-five minutes into the match, an inside-of-the-box pass was made to Ralf Zehnter but UIS goalkeeper Tommy Geile came up with the save. Horstman followed up with a corner kick but Geile rejected Floris Blom's shot.

During the 75th minute, Adler fired a shot from 33 yards out that was saved by Geile. Two minutes later, Hiscock recovered a loose ball in the box, produced the shot but Huang recorded the save. Eighty-eight minutes into the match, Mueller followed up a corner kick by eluding two UIS defenders on the right baseline. He sent a pass up top to Horstman, who fired a shot from 36 yards out but Geile came up with the save. The Flyers fought off the Prairie Stars for the remaining two minutes.
 
"We had some chances. Rhys had a great free-kick opportunity and Harry had a great chance. Credit Lewis for battling it out and good luck to them."
 
The Flyers advanced to the GLVC semifinals, where they will face the seventh-seeded University of Southern Indiana (11-6) on Nov. 3 in Indianapolis, IN at Carroll Stadium at a time yet to be determined.
 
Among GLVC leaders, Mueller leads in goals per match (.750), game-winning goals (6) and ranks second in points per match (1.63).

Huang rejected four of the five shots he faced. He currently ranks fourth in the conference with a .791 save percentage. Geile saw nine shots and tallied seven saves. He is currently ranked second in the GLVC with an .812 save percentage.
 
The Prairie Stars received shots on goal from Sanz de Galdeano, Coombes, Hiscock, Naba Alzhyri and Adrian Ortega.
 
SENIORS
Alzhyri, Coombes, Geile, Jose Corona, Khalid Dhalla, Zach Downing, Cesar Flores, Kyle Hamilton, Benjamin Shuty and Will Teichman each wrapped up their UIS soccer careers.
 
Alzhyri started 34 matches during his two-year career with UIS. Among UIS Division II leaders, the midfielder from Nashville, TN ranks second in career assists (6), ranks third in single-season goals (6), ranks fourth in career points (20), is tied for first in single-season assists (6 in 2016), tied for fifth in single-season points (12) and holds the school record for career game-winning goals (5) and single-season game-winning goals (5). Alzhyri is also tied for second in the GLVC with five game-winning goals.
 
Geile made 52 career starts in goal for the Prairie Stars. Among UIS Division II leaders, the goalkeeper from O'Fallon, MO concluded his career as the all-time leader in shutouts (10) and save percentage (.771). Continuing to make his mark in UIS Division II history, Geile is ranked second in career saves (236), ranked second in single-season save percentage and holds the top two spots in single-season shutouts with five in 2017 and three in 2016.
 
Coombes started in 50 career matches. Among UIS Division II career leaders, the defender from Auckland, New Zealand is tied for fifth in goals (8) and tied for third in game-winning goals (3).
 
Dhalla made 66 career starts. The defender from Shattuck, MN notched eight career points off three goals and two assists.
 
Hamilton started in 18 matches and recorded two shutouts in his career. Shuty served as goalkeeper in five career matches. Teichman played in 50 matches and provided three career points off a goal and an assist. Flores played in 19 career matches and Corona played in one match this season. Downing spent the season sidelined due to injury.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
UIS set new milestones in 2017, breaking the program records for wins and conference wins, while qualifying for its first-ever GLVC Tournament. The Prairie Stars expect to return 25 players and aim to add to their success next season.
 
"I'm proud of the team. They never gave up and kept battling the whole match. The team has made another step forward this season and we will be back at it again next year."