PORTLAND, Ore. --- Linfield men's soccer (1-10-2, 1-6-2 NWC) got the offense going early, scoring four first-half goals in a 4-4 draw on the road at Lewis & Clark (0-10-2, 0-7-1 NWC).
Midfielder
Ross Vargo opened the scoring early on a rainy Sunday morning, striking in the 5th minute with his fourth goal of the year, capitalizing on an early chance to put Linfield in front 1–0.
Just ten minutes later, forward
Julian Lara-Martinez doubled the advantage, firing home his second goal of the season in the 15th minute to make it 2–0. Linfield's press continued to overwhelm the Pioneers, and in the 20th minute, defender
Derek Rowe buried a pass from
Caleb Ishizaka to push the lead to 3–0, the largest lead of the 'Cats season thus far.
Lewis & Clark pulled one back in the 32nd minute, executing on just their second shot attempt of the match. Lara-Martinez found the back of the net again in the 35th minute—his second goal of the day and third of the season—to give Linfield a 4–1 halftime advantage.
The Pioneers came out quickly after the break, earning a penalty less than a minute into the second half. Lewis & Clark converted from the spot in the 46th minute to make it 4–2 'Cats.
Momentum briefly swung back to Linfield when the Pioneers' picked up a red card in the 54th minute. Despite playing a man down, Lewis & Clark stayed on the attack, cutting the deficit to 4–3 in the 74th minute.
The equalizer came in the 78th minute on a Linfield own-goal, as
Anderson Kelly's attempt to head away a Pioneer free kick found the back of the 'Cats net. Neither team could break the draw late, resulting in a 4-4 draw.
Linfield finished with 10 total shots, six on goal, and earned four first-half corner kicks. The Wildcats were issued two yellow cards—one to
Jaren Nishikawa in the first half and another to
Riley Rama in the second. Lewis & Clark was shown six yellows and one red. Lara-Martinez led the 'Cats with three shots, scoring on two of them. Goalkeeper
Colby Reese played all 90-minutes in goal for Linfield, making three saves.
Men's soccer looks ahead to next Wednesday, where they will host the Pacific Boxers under the lights at the Linfield Soccer/Lacrosse Complex at 7:45 p.m.
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