GALESBURG, Illinois - The Prairie Fire men's soccer team defeated the Lawrence University Vikings today by a final score of 4-1. With the win today at home, Knox moves to 7-1-0 in conference play and clinches a spot in the Midwest Conference Tournament.
 
The first half saw Knox's typical physical toughness manifest itself early on, as Nick Janulis used it to his advantage to score the game's opening goal in the 9th minute. Unfortunately for the Prairie Fire, the Vikings' Jack Morrissey managed to squeeze past the Knox defense and level up the game at one apiece in the 23rd minute. Knox kept the pressure on throughout the half, putting up shots that seemed destined for goal, only to be broken up or narrowly saved by Lawrence's keeper. As a result, the Prairie Fire didn't enter the half with a deserved lead.
 
Knox came out with a determination to take back the lead and prevent an unfortunate tie. Despite impressive efforts by Jun Min and Adetayo Adefioye, however, Hunter Lanton of the Vikings managed to save their early efforts. As the half continued, it appeared that none of Knox's offensive talent would be able to make a difference. Then, in the 73rd minute, the Prairie Fire received a major break, as Julien Riviere of Lawrence was shown his second yellow card of the game, resulting in his dismissal. With a new opportunity to score, Pedro Moura used the foul to convert on a penalty kick, giving Knox a late lead. Taking out more of their frustration, Martin Garcia and Janulis scored with less than five minutes left in the game to effectively ice it, giving Knox their 14th victory of the season. 

"We had another late tie and came through again," said head coach Brian O'Connor. "We just keep fighting in every game, now we just need to finish the season strong."
 
Knox takes a trip out of conference to visit Elmhurst College this Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.