Liberty Welcomes UIW, HCU for OVC Games This Weekend

LYNCHBURG, VA. – The Liberty Flames men's soccer team will host the Incarnate Word Cardinals and the Houston Christian Huskies for Ohio Valley Conference matches on Thursday and Sunday at Osborne Stadium. Kickoff for both games is 7 p.m.

Liberty opened OVC play with a 6-1 win over Southern Indiana Saturday afternoon at Osborne Stadium. OVC Offensive Player of the Week Zach Lifferth scored three goals and had an assist, setting a conference record with seven points in the contest.

Both Thursday and Sunday's games are Liberty's first meeting with each team this year. The Flames will travel to UIW (Nov. 2) and HCU (Oct. 30) later this season.

Liberty enters the weekend with a 1-0 record in the OVC and a 5-2-2 overall record. UIW has posted a 0-0-1 record in the OVC and has a 4-2-3 overall record. Meanwhile, HCU will play at Southern Indiana on Thursday, before coming to Lynchburg on Sunday. The Huskies will enter Thursday's contest with a 0-0-1 mark in conference and a 5-2-1 overall record.

Liberty News & Notes

For the third consecutive season, Liberty began OVC action with a victory. The Flames defeated Southern Indiana 6-1 in the rain on Saturday at Osborne Stadium.
In the contest, forward Zach Lifferth scored the first three goals of the game as Liberty netted four first-half goals. In the second half, Lifferth assisted on a goal for his seventh point of the game, setting an OVC record for points in a conference game. In addition, the senior became the first Flames since Tresor Mbuyu had seven points in a 5-0 win at VMI on Aug. 28, 2018.
Forward Dylan Swinehart also scored two goals in the match. The sophomore's first goal of his career came in the first half, and he later scored another goal in the second half.
With the win, Liberty moves to 4-1-1 at Osborne Stadium in 2025. The Flames have outscored their opponents, 21-6, at home this season.
Liberty and Incarnate Word have met four times during the OVC regular season, with the Flames holding a 2-1-1 mark. However, UIW defeated Liberty 2-0 in the OVC Quarterfinals last season and holds a 3-2-1 record all-time against the Flames.
Liberty and Houston Christian have met four times, all during the OVC regular season. The Flames hold a 2-0-2 edge in their series with the Huskies.
The Flames enter the weekend having outscored their opponents, 25-14, on the year. Liberty is tied with Lindenwood for the OVC lead in goals. The Flames are sixth nationally in scoring offense, averaging 2.78 goals per game, and are 20^th nationally in goal differential (+11).
After his performance on Saturday, Lifferth was named the OVC Offensive Player of the Week for Sept. 30. He joins defender Lucas Kelly as Flames who have garnered Offensive Player of the Week honors this season. Kelly was Co-Offensive Player of the Week for Aug. 26.
Lifferth leads the Flames and is tied with three other players for the OVC lead with five goals. In addition, the senior leads Liberty with 11 points (5 goals, 1 assist) and is tied for second in the conference with two other players.
Forwards Sam Farner and Lucas Kelly are second on the Flames and seventh in the OVC in points with nine. Kelly is fifth in the OVC with four goals. Meanwhile, Farner has netted three goals and has three assists.
Defender Perry Blay had two assists on Saturday and now leads the Flames with five. The junior is tied for second in the OVC in the category.
Freshman Jayden Ramos scored his second goal of the season and also had an assist on Saturday. He has eight points on the year.
Tyler Beck has played every minute in goal this season for the Flames. The sophomore has posted a 1.56 goals-against average and a .659 save percentage. He has three shutouts.
Head coach Kelly Findley is in his seventh and final season at Liberty. Findley has announced his retirement from college coaching at the end of the season.

Schedule

Liberty Welcomes UIW, HCU for OVC Games This Weekend

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Players Mentioned

Tyler Beck

Perry Blay

Sam Farner

Lucas Kelly

Zach Lifferth

Jayden Ramos

Dylan Swinehart