Friday night, roadside rivals Lipscomb University and Belmont University kicked off their seasons in a “Battle of the Boulevard” match-up. The 17th meeting between the teams ended with the Bisons hoisting the Red Bull Trophy yet again after posting a 3-1 victory over the Bruins.
The Bisons, in their white and purple striped uniforms, took the field around 6 p.m. to warm up. Ten minutes later, the Bruins, dressed in red, took the opposite end of the field in an attempt to win back the coveted title of ‘Battle’ Champions.
From the beginning of the match, Belmont started off aggressive and pushed deep into Lipscomb’s defense multiple times. For the rest of the game, the Bisons’ defense was not so generous. Lipscomb held their own against a good opponent, taking 11 shots on goal and making 3, while the Bison defense allowed 7 shots on goal. Only one found itself in the back of Lipscomb’s net.
The first Bison goal arrived when Josue Chavez, the sophomore midfielder from Colorado, took an open shot from 25 yards away to get the ball rolling on Lipscomb’s eventual win.
If there wasn’t any other indication that these two teams are rivals, the seven cards — six yellow and one red — certainly said enough. From the 38th minute on, Belmont played a man down after Cody Stratton was ejected for a slide from behind. Of the other cards, Belmont and Lipscomb each had three cautions.
The visiting team did not not make it easy for Lipscomb to nab the win, however. Trailing 2-0 entering halftime, the Bruins worked hard to get back in a winning position. Bruins forward AJ Arnold brought the game to within a point of a tie. He took an unassisted shot from the top of the penalty box, putting the pressure on Lipscomb and giving hope to Belmont.
Just under three minutes later, though, Omar Djabi scored his second goal of the night on only his second shot to seal the victory for the Bisons and continue the school’s winning streak against the Bruins.
Djabi, a junior from Valencia, Venezuela, won the Player of the Game award for his two goals, one shy of a hat trick.
“It’s an honor to be here, to play for this team,” Djabi said. “I’m not going to be the only player here. I couldn’t do it without my team, so I think we all are players of the game.”
Djabi also said that it is important to continue to win games, a goal shared by Coach Charles Morrow, who has yet to lose to Belmont.
“Certainly [beating] Belmont is a goal, but more so than a goal, it’s a standard,” Morrow said. “As far as larger goals, certainly the [Atlantic Sun] Championship is a goal, but, ultimately, the big picture goal is to win a national championship, and we feel like we are moving in the right direction.”
The team will get a week’s break in action before traveling to Ohio on Friday, Sept. 6, to take part in the Dayton Tournament. The first tourney game will be against Eastern Illinois at 3:30 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Lipscomb Athletics.