Box Score

MARIETTA, Ohio – The 20th-ranked Otterbein men's soccer team tied an 18-year old winning streak Wednesday evening following a 3-0 victory at Marietta inside Don Drumm Stadium.

The Cardinals (14-2, 8-0 OAC), which jumped five spots in the latest national poll, inflate their winning streak to 12-straight games to tie the program record set back in 1999, a team which finished 19-1-1 overall and a perfect 8-0 in Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) play with a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

The win over Marietta also officially earned Otterbein its first outright OAC regular-season title since 2002, while the 2003 championship resulted in a three-way tie. 

Saturday's matchup at Mount Union is the final obstacle in the way of Otterbein completing an undefeated season in league competition. Kickoff for the regular-season finale in Alliance is scheduled for 7 p.m.  

Marietta (10-5-2, 4-3-1 OAC) came into the game tied for third-place in the conference standings, having won five of its last eight games to put forth a challenge on its home field for the Cardinals.

Otterbein got off to its fastest start of the season on the scoring front as senior Jaden Lunger headed in the game's first goal just 80 seconds in, notching his third score of the season on a header to the lower left corner of the net off a free kick into six-yard box from sophomore Pau Piang.

The score remained 1-0 in favor of the Cardinals heading into halftime, as the Pioneers trailed 4-2 in the shot category with all of Otterbein's attempts coming on goal. Cardinal goalkeeper Collin Hoffmann collected one save in the frame.

It was not long into the second half before senior Nate Norris found the back of the net for the fifth time this season, checking in for classmate Noah Coons late in the 55th minute before sending in the Cards' second goal of the evening less than two minutes later off a dish from fellow senior Blake Steenrod.

Senior Gavin Koerner rounded out the Cardinal scoring effort in the 89th minute, heading in his first goal of the year off a corner kick from junior Toby Varland.

The win also secured Hoffmann's 14th victory in goal and eighth shutout of the year, finishing with a game-high five saves. Marietta ended the game with a 12-8 lead in shots, while Otterbein made the most of its with six on goal.