MARIETTA, Ohio — No. 22 ranked Capital University stayed in the hunt for the Ohio Athletic Conference men's soccer title with a 2-0 win over Marietta College Wednesday (Oct. 19) afternoon. The Crusaders improve to 12-1-2 overall and 4-0-2 in the OAC. Marietta slips to 8-7-1 on the season and 3-3-0 in the OAC.
"We certainly gave it a go, but in the end, it just wasn't enough," Marietta head coach
Joe Bergin said. "They punished us for our mistakes, we are not able to say the same. We still have a lot to play for, but we will need to raise our game to another level down the stretch."
Featuring one of the top defenses in the region, Capital limited Marietta to a single shot on goal and four total shots in the match. The Pioneers' best scoring opportunity came in the opening minute of the match.
Capital keeper Justin Niswonger came out of his box and attempted to clear the ball. His kicked deflected off a charging
Taylor Reasoner (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson) and headed toward the Crusader goal. Reasoner, who was charging towards the goal when the ball hit him, ran by Niswonger and had an open net. However Reasoner was unable to catch up to the ball before it crossed the end line and went out of play.
Trevor Collins put the Crusaders on top with an unassisted goal at the 10:43 mark. Collins took possession of the ball from the Marietta defense inside the 18-yard box. He dribbled to the right corner of the six and fired a shot inside the far left post for his fourth goal of the season.
Capital extended the lead early in the second half. Hunter Booth sent a long cross from the right side to the left corner of the six where Cheyn Roux was waiting. Roux headed the ball inside the near post for his eighth goal of the fall.
Niswonger made one save in goal for Capital as he recorded his eighth shutout of the season.
Tyler Sholl (Johnstown, Ohio/Big Walnut) went the distance in goal for Marietta making three saves.
For the match, Capital outshot the Pioneers 9-4, including a 5-1 edge in shots on goal. The Crusaders had a 9-3 advantage in corner kicks.
With three matches remaining in the regular season, Marietta sits in fifth place in the OAC standings with nine points, one point behind Heidelberg. The top six teams get in the conference tournament.
Marietta plays at Heidelberg University on Saturday (Oct. 22) at 2 p.m. Fans can follow all the Pioneer teams all year long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.
