APPLETON, Wis. -- A pair of penalty kicks Saturday lifted the Lawrence University men's soccer team to a 2-1 Midwest Conference victory over Knox College.
    The victory moved the Vikings to 3-0-0 in conference play and evened their overall record at 6-6-0. 
    The Vikings grabbed the early lead when Knox took down a Lawrence attacker in the penalty box. Sean McLaughlin took the penalty kick for Lawrence and drilled it into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead at the 16:05 mark. 
    Knox evened the score at 1-1 on Alex White's goal at 25:23, but the Vikings weren't done in the first half.
    Knox was called for a handball in the box at the 36:59 mark and Mark Todd stepped up to take the penalty kick for the Vikings. His blast found the lower right corner and the Vikings led 2-1.
    Both teams had several more outstanding chances to score, but the defenses stood up for both teams. The Vikings were shorthanded as multiple starters were out due to injury or illness, and Lawrence lost another regular during the contest.
    The Lawrence defense, led by goalkeeper Hunter Lanton, kept the Prairie Fire off the board for the final 65 minutes to secure the win. Lanton finished with nine saves to pick up the win. Nicolas Lantzendorffler made three saves and took the loss for Knox (6-6-0, 3-1-0).
    This was Lawrence's first win over Knox since a 4-1 victory back in 2011.