Robinson’s overtime strike gives Lipscomb another NCAA tourney upset

ORLANDO, Fla. – If there’s a Cinderella story in the NCAA men’s soccer tournament, it’s been the Lipscomb Bisons.

And after a 1-0 overtime upset of No. 9 Central Florida on Sunday, the shoe apparently fits well.

Lipscomb’s Louis Robinson got a foot on low cross from Austin Eager in the 97th minute, and the freshman beat UCF keeper Yannik Oettl to give the Bisons a 1-0 victory.

The win came just three days after Lipscomb stunned Washington with a 5-4 victory in penalty kicks. The Bisons then made the cross-country trip from Seattle to Orlando on Friday to prepare for their second-round match at UCF.

Lipscomb goalie Chris Zappia had another career night and made eight saves for the second consecutive game. UCF fired 19 total shots to Lipscomb’s eight, but the Bison defense held on for extra time.

Just before Robinson’s decisive tally, Logan Paynter and Noah Gulden each had shots on the UCF net. The ball was cleared away by UCF and corralled by Ryan Birchfield, who fed a pass to Eager to set up the game-winning strike.

The Knights (13-2-3) controlled possession and appeared to have the Bisons on their heels for much of the first half. But after allowing 10 UCF shots in the first 45 minutes, the Bisons allowed just five in the second half.

Robinson, a midfielder from Nottingham, England, emerged as a goal-scoring threat midway through the season. His four goals are tied for second most on the team behind Paynter’s nine tallies.

Lipscomb (10-9-1) will face a familiar foe in No. 3 Kentucky (18-1-1) in the Round of 16. The Bisons took the Wildcats to overtime on Sept. 18 in Nashville, only to drop the match in overtime, 3-2.

Last season, Lipscomb went to Lexington and upset Kentucky with a 3-2 win of their own, thanks to goals from Paynter, Birchfield and Ivan Sakou.

The Lipscomb-Kentucky match is slated for next Saturday, Nov. 24 at 6 p.m. CDT. The Bisons are the first ASUN team to advance to the third round of the NCAA tournament since 1996.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and can be purchased through the official Kentucky Athletics website.

Photo courtesy of Lipscomb Athletics