ADA, Ohio — Ohio Northern University got a shutdown performance from its defense as the Polar Bears defeated Marietta College, 1-0, Saturday (Oct. 4) evening in men's soccer action. The Pioneers fall to 3-7-2 overall and 0-1 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. The Polar Bears improve to 6-0-4 overall and 1-0 in the OAC.

"I can't explain how proud I am of the team. ONU is a handful and we battled till the final whistle. Noah (Walker) and his defenders stood on their heads and kept us in the game," Marietta head coach Joe Bergin said."We knew coming in we'd be up against it. We need to keep the faith and move forward to a home match on Wednesday."

Ohio Northern controlled possession for most of the game. The Polar Bears fired shots at will, but only one found its mark. Colin Gottron found the back of the net in the 63rd minute with assists from Wil Baker and Gage Foster.

Marietta's attack was held in check by the Polar Bear defense. The Pioneers managed just three shots in the match, including two shots on goal. Meanwhile, ONU launched 37 total shots with 12 shots on goal.

Noah Walker (Export, Pa./Franklin Regional) went the distance in goal for the Pioneers and recorded 11 saves while allowing the one goal. Carson Zurmehly posted two saves in goal for the Polar Bears.

Marietta hosts Otterbein University on Wednesday (Oct. 8). Kickoff is set for 7:00 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 X and Instagram.