Box Score

MARIETTA, Ohio – The Otterbein men's soccer team suffered a tough 1-0 loss in conference action Tuesday afternoon, allowing an early goal in a defeat down south at Marietta College.

The loss, coupled with a win by Baldwin Wallace University, is enough to eliminate the Cardinals from Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament contention. Otterbein (10-8, 3-5 OAC) will finish out its season Saturday afternoon with a 1 p.m. match at Mount Union.

Otterbein had a few good opportunities early on against Marietta, attempting three corner kicks in the seventh minute but coming up empty each time.

The Pioneers (6-10, 4-4 OAC)  got on the board shortly after, receiving a goal from leading-scorer Wes Riley in the eighth minute on a breakaway, when his first shot hit the post before a second attempt found the back of the net. It marked his tenth goal of the season, tying Otterbein's Jared Pulliam for second-best in the conference.

Otterbein continued to apply pressure offensively, forcing Marietta goalkeeper Sebastian Parra to make three saves while attempting 10 shots in the opening 45 minutes.

The Cardinals had a pair of looks after the second half got underway, but Parra was able to save shots from Pulliam and freshman Nate Norris to keep the match scoreless.  

Otterbein appeared to have gotten on the board in the 87th minute when Luis Rivas corralled a ball that popped out of a challenge and finished strong, but an offsides call was given after a quick referee meeting and the goal was disallowed. Shot attempts from Costa Poulias and Blake Steenrod in the final minutes would be saved as Otterbein was unable to come up with the equalizer.

Otterbein finished with a 17-13 shot margin and took a season-high 13 corner kicks throughout the match. Mack Stamper had six saves for the Cards while Parra made 10 in the winning effort.

Fans can follow Saturday's match at Mount Union via live stats by clicking here.