LAKEWOOD, NJ (Oct. 10, 2026) – Kristians Prieditis scored twice, including the game-winner in the 79
th minute as defending CACC Tournament champion Bridgeport upended Georgian Court, 3-1 on Saturday at the GCU Track & Field Complex. The loss, the Lions second straight, drops them to 6-4-3 (2-2-1).
How it Happened
• Bridgeport outshot the Lions, 22-14, including 14-6 in the second half.
• UB held a 6-4 edge in corner kicks.
• The Purple Knights were cautioned four times while GCU was issued three yellow cards.
1st Half
• Prieditis had an early chance, firing a low shot in the 7
th minute through traffic that was corralled by a diving
Simon Mortensen.
• The Lions put their first shot on target in the 18
th minute when
Marcel Novak, in his collegiate debut, was denied by Magnus Midtlien.
• The first half was stop and start throughout, as the two teams combined for 13 fouls and five yellow cards. Despite all the whistles, Mortensen remained unfazed, stopping Abdalla Hanaif's rising shot in the 28
th minute.
• van Eif nearly broke through in the 39
th minute.
Ferdinand Holdhaus picked off a pass and found the senior, who managed to shrug off a defender. But his low shot was stopped to keep the match scoreless.
2nd Half
• In the 59
th minute, GCU was whistled for a foul in the box on a seemingly harmless throw in. Prieditis stepped up to take the penalty kick and had his initial shot stopped as Mortensen guessed correctly and dove to his right. Unfortunately for the Lions, the rebound came right back to the reigning CACC Rookie of the Year and he easily put it home to make it 1-0.
• Just 8:28 later, the Lions found the equalizer.
Jack Pollintine-Smith jarred the ball free inside enemy territory and sprung van Eif. After navigating past a defender, he found a wide open
Noah-Maxim Kleiser, who scored for the second time in the last three matches.
• UB broke the deadlock in the 79
th minute. Pablo Marques, from inside the penalty area found Prieditis who did the rest.
• Loic Forsterling finished off the scoring 2:30 later.
Lion Stat Leaders
•
Noah-Maxim Kleiser scored one goal.
•
Gijs van Eif picked up one assist.
•
Simon Mortensen made eight saves.
For the Purple Knights
• Kristians Prieditis finished with two goals and one assist.
• Loic Forsterling scored his fourth goal of the season.
• Pablo Marques collected an assist.
• Magnus Midtlien made three saves.
News and Notes
• With his second half assist, van Eif moved into sole possession of second place all-time in points (80).
• van Eif also moved into second place in shots after taking six. His 183 are just five shy of tying Louis Silva for the most in program history (188).
• Mortensen's eight saves are a new career-high, surpassing the six he made against both Monroe and Bentley.
• This is the first time the Lions have lost at home to Bridgeport in three meetings (2-1).
Up Next
• GCU faces off with Wilmington on Tuesday afternoon on the turf. Kickoff is slated for 3:00PM.
