AUSTIN – EDDIE VILLATORO's goal in the 19th minute was all St. Edward's needed, and the fourth-seeded Hilltoppers defeated No. 5 seed Lubbock Christian, 1-0, in the quarterfinals of the Lone Star Conference Tournament on Tuesday afternoon at Lewis-Chen Family Field.
FABIAN PALLARES had the ball at the top of the box and took a shot that was saved, but Villatoro was there to clean it up and put the ball in the back of the net.
SEU had a chance to double its lead in the 39th minute, as
GRANT VERNON took a shot from inside the 6-yard box, but LCU goalkeeper Braxton Thorne went to ground to make the save.
The Chaps (9-7-2), who were held to just two shots in the first 45 minutes, pushed more on the offensive attack in the second half. LCU's best opportunity for the equalizer came in the 89th minute, as Fernando Flores set up for a free kick. Flores curled his right-footed attempt over the wall and hit off the near post.
KELLEN GULLION posted the shutout in goal for St. Edward's (8-7-3). The freshman goalkeeper made five saves on the day to log his third clean sheet of the campaign.
The Hilltoppers held a 12-10 advantage in shot attempts, including a 7-5 edge in shots on target.
St. Edward's will move on to the semifinals and play top-seeded St. Mary's on Friday. The matchup is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in San Antonio.
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