MURFREESBORO, N.C. – The Chowan men's soccer team kicked off the 2026 season on Thursday, August 27, against familiar conference opponent Lees-McRae. In a close match that would end in a 3-2 decision, the Bobcats narrowly outscored the Hawks in to secure the win.
A pair of Hawks recorded their first collegiate goals in the contest, trading blows with the Bobcats throughout the match. Freshman Fernando Hernandez and sophomore Juan Jose Torres each found the back of the net, recording Chowan's two goals of the evening.
THE BASICS
FINAL | Chowan 2, Lees-McRae 3
RECORDS | Chowan 0-1-0 , Lees-McRae 1-0-0
LOCATION | Murfreesboro, N.C. (Hawks Soccer Field)
SCORING
07:18 LMU James Rump (Oskar Lindegård , Adam Condron)
11:32 CHOWAN Fernando Hernandez (Bradley Williams)
18:05 LMU Conor Hart (Unassisted)
73:57 LMU Andrea Marrazzo (Unassisted)
88:08 CHOWAN Juan Jose Torres (Sean Jacobs)
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Lees-McRae would strike first, finding the back of the net in the seventh minute before the Hawks answered just over four minutes later. At the 11:32 mark, Bradley Williams found an open Hernandez, who scored to record the Hawks' first goal of the season. The Bobcats would regain the lead in the 18th minute, taking a 2-1 advantage into halftime.
The second half remained scoreless until the 74th minute, when Lees-McRae added another goal to extend their lead. The Hawks would have the final goal of the match, as Torres headed the ball into the back of the net off an assist from Sean Jacobs.
Williams led the Hawks with three shots and three shots on goal while also recording the assist on Hernandez's goal. Hernandez added two shots on goal and one goal. Corey Nuttall added two shots, while Ken Naito, and Robbie Deighan each recorded a shot. Torres would total a shot, shot on goal for the Hawks final goal of the game.
In goal, Lucas Kibrya played the full 90 minutes and recorded six saves to open the season.
UP NEXT
Chowan will have a day off before returning to action on Saturday, August 29 for day two of the Michael Shope Memorial Tournament. The Hawks will take on Concord University of the Mountain East Conference at 4:00 PM at Hawks Soccer Field.
