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WESTERVILLE, Ohio – The Otterbein men's soccer team delivered a wild and memorable performance Sunday night in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, holding off 13th-ranked Kenyon College by a score of 3-2 amidst driving rain at Memorial Stadium.

The Cardinals, ranked 10th in the latest national poll, jumped on the Lords by scoring three goals in the first half and ultimately running their winning streak to 17 matches.

Otterbein, now 19-2 overall, advances to the NCAA Sweet 16 and will square off against No. 4-ranked St. Thomas (Minn.) next weekend in Chicago, Ill, with North Park University serving as the host. The Tommies currently hold a 21-1 record.

"Everyone is good once you get to this stage, so anything can happen," head coach Jason Griffiths said. "We have gone one game at a time and that continues to be the approach. We will enjoy this, and then go back to the grind of watching film and preparing for the next opponent. Our guys will be ready to go next week and try to progress another round forward."

Both sides exchanged possession over the initial 15 minutes, with Kenyon (16-3-3) getting the better of the chances on three shots and a trio of corner kicks.

The Cards weathered that initial storm, and got on the board after a fast-break shot from Erick Juarez-Manning was saved but resulted in a 24th-minute corner kick. The ensuing ball into the box was kept alive by senior Jaden Lunger's head, and eventually cleaned up by Juarez-Manning in front of the net.

"We didn't get over-excited and just stayed relaxed after the first goal," Juarez-Manning said. "That mindset led into Gavin's second goal and we kept going strong after that."

Otterbein began adding to its lead in the 32nd minute on another corner-kick sequence, with Pau Piang initially sending in a ball that was headed from Erick Stucky to Gavin Koerner, who finished off the play up close.

The Cards put an exclamation point on the first half at the 42:09 mark with another bulldog-like effort, as Koerner kept a pass alive and fed it back into the box toward two teammates. Senior Nate Norris had the first challenge with a defender before the ball popped out to freshman Kohei Adams, who roped in his first collegiate goal and ignited another celebration.

Kenyon had a set piece early in the second half, and a flurry in the box translated into two primes saves from Cardinal goalkeeper Collin Hoffmann. The second stop came on a scrum near the goal line, where Hoffmann fell on the ball and a dogpile occurred.

The Lords never quit, staying very much alive and getting two header goals from Woo Jeon in a six-minute span to claw back in the match. The second one came with 10 minutes remaining and put pressure squarely on the Cardinal defense.

Otterbein hung on down the stretch, clearing multiple opportunities by the opposition and watching senior defender Jaden Lunger head out a Kenyon corner kick with 1:07 to play that proved to be the last dangerous sequence.

Kenyon finished with a 19-6 shot advantage, but Otterbein made the most of its looks with all but one on goal. Both sides took seven corner kicks and Hoffman was solid once again, making 10 saves to keep his team ahead throughout.

"I thought we handled Kenyon's pressure really well," Hoffman explained. "The back line works great together and they make my job a lot easier. I can't complain about that."

The result gives Otterbein its first victory over Kenyon since the 2012 season, and thrusts the Cards into the Round of 16 for the first time since their national-runner up finish in 2002.

"This will be a great opportunity to show more people what Otterbein and the OAC can bring to the table," Koerner added. "We play in a strong conference and feel prepared to keep this going."