LISBON FALLS — Thus far, the St. Dom’s boys’ soccer has experienced a pretty smooth introduction to the Mountain Valley Conference.

The Saints had gone unbeaten in their first full week of play but got one of their biggest tests Tuesday against the defending MVC champs from Lisbon.

“We thought it was going to be our best game so far,” said St. Dom’s forward Alex Parker. “We knew if we played to our potential, we’d be fine.”

The Saints started slowly against the Greyhounds but soon gained momentum, scoring two first-half goals that held up in the 2-0 victory.

“I knew they’d be a good team,” said St. Dom’s coach Matt Erickson. “Dan (Sylvester) is a good coach. I knew that they’d have a good level — a level we may not have seen yet this year. That was probably true. They were a good team, and our guys were able to stay with it.”

Parker had a goal and an assist to lead the Saints (4-0) while St. Dom’s outshot Lisbon 17-4.

“They played a possession game, and we didn’t,” said Sylvester. “We got discombobulated about what our style of play is. We didn’t get to a passing game. We started to kick and chase. They executed, and we didn’t. They totally outplayed us today.”

Lisbon actually started strong and moved the ball into Saint’s territory but couldn’t set up a quality bid. The Greyhounds didn’t produce their first shot on goal until a header off a cross with 57 seconds left in the first half.

“If you don’t establish the short game, you can’t get your teammates involved,” said Sylvester. “We kind of sat back on our heels a little bit too much.”

Though St. Dom’s was off-balance early on, it settled down and began moving the ball effectively. The Saints began to generate scoring chances and were quickly putting increased pressure on the young Lisbon defense.

“Our midfielders started to attack and get inside deep in the flanks,” said Erickson. “They served the ball into the middle and that was key. We were able to get the outside midfielders involved, and we got outside backs involved, too.”

Just moments after the Saints hit the left post, Parker made it 1-0 with 20:58 left in the half. He drilled a shot from outside the penalty area high into the right corner of the net.

I just saw a cross coming,” said Parker. “I tried to settle it and tried to put it on target. It just ended up going in.”

Lisbon (4-1) stayed close with the Saints but couldn’t generate much in the way of scoring opportunities. Ethan Audie and the Greyhounds’ young defense played solidly, but St. Dom’s managed to make it 2-0 with  3:19 left in the half. Parker’s corner kick was redirected in by Jack Erickson. Audie tried to make a kick save on the shot, but it was ruled over the line before the save was made.

“I was just trying to send it into the middle and create some stuff,” said Parker.

In the second half, Lisbon began creating a little more offense but couldn’t produce enough to challenge Saints’ keeper Nick Brigham. The Saints’ strong finish to the first half proved too much for the Greyhounds to match.

“We just started attacking wide and getting everyone involved,” said Parker. “That really opened up their defense and spread them out.”