Soccer Game Preview: Lincoln-Way East vs. Lincoln-Way West

The Lincoln-Way East Griffins will venture away from home to face off against the Lincoln-Way West Warriors at 6:15 p.m. on Thursday. Lincoln-Way East's defense has only allowed 0.5 goals per game this season, so Lincoln-Way West's offense will have their work cut out for them.

Lincoln-Way East is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Illinois' top teams: Lincoln-Way Central, who was ranked third at the time (Lincoln-Way East was ranked 22nd). The Griffins blew past the Knights 3-0 on Thursday. Lincoln-Way East might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five games by three goals or more this season.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Lincoln-Way West, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. While the 1-1 score might suggest a draw, it was the Warriors who were credited with the victory on Thursday. Lincoln-Way West got it done in the shootout by posting four goals to Sandburg's two. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last six times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.

Lincoln-Way East has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-2 record this season. As for Lincoln-Way West, the win got them back to even at 4-4.

Lincoln-Way East took their victory against Lincoln-Way West in their previous meeting back in March by a conclusive 5-0 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Griffins since the team won't have the home-pitch advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.