PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Marietta College women's soccer team was defeated by 20th ranked Carnegie Mellon University, 3-0 on Sunday (Sept. 26) afternoon.  With the win the Tartans improve to 7-1 on the season, and with the loss the Pioneers are now 1-5-1 overall.

"This was one of those moments where it wasn't about the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog, and we did well to carry a big bite," said Head Coach Sean Kaighin.  "We are grateful for the opportunity and the learning experience.  We have a big week ahead as Ohio Northern comes to town."

The first half of the game was played primarily on the Marietta half of the field.  The Pioneer defense held strong, as they kept Carnegie Mellon off the score board.  Marietta's back line of Anna Bardwell (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville Central), Emma Diorio (Bellbrook, Ohio/Bellbrook), Madi Wagner (Bowling Green, Ohio/Bowling Green), and Ryah Haidar (Sylvania, Ohio/Sylvania Southview) helped goalie Katie Delaney (Batavia, Ohio/West Clermont) pitch a first half shutout.  

The Pioneers were out shot, 13-0, seven of the 13 Tartan shots were on goal, and Delaney saved all seven of them.  Carnegie Mellon also won the corner kick battle, 11-0 in the opening half.  

The Tartans got on the board in the 58th minute of the match when Alex Adams found the back of the net.  Adams gathered a loose ball in the 6-yard box and placed it in the lower right corner of the net.

Carnegie Mellon scored its second goal of the match a minute later when Adams scored off a rebound.  Rachel Legg shot from about 30 yards out, and hit the left post, the ball bounced right to Adams in the box and she finished her second goal of the game.  

In the 85th minute of the match Breana Valentovish made the score 3-0 when she shot from 30 yards out and hit the upper left corner of the goal.  The Tartans won the game 3-0.  

Delaney played just over 70 minutes in goal for Marietta, she faced 15 shots on goal, and made 13 saves in the match.  Drew Ultican (Baltimore, Ohio/Pickerington North) played the remainder of the match, she faced four shots on goal, and made three saves.

The Pioneers will return to the field Saturday (Oct. 2) when they host Ohio Northern University to open Ohio Athletic Conference play.

Fans can follow all of 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.