Box Score
BEXLEY, Ohio – The Otterbein men's soccer team posted a gritty 1-0 shutout at cross-town rival Capital Saturday night in its Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) opener at Bernlohr Stadium.
The Cardinals now sit at 7-2 overall and extend their win streak to five-straight games, picking up their first win against the Crusaders since the 2013 season. Coming into the game Capital had claimed victory two of the last three years, while the two squads also played to a 2-2 draw in 2015.
Otterbein got the scoring going first in the 20th minute of action as junior
Toby Varland lofted a corner kick into the Capital box to which senior
Jaden Lunger and junior
Zach Lewis both made a run at, before Lewis gained the first touch and then fired the ball to the far post for his third goal of the year.
The Cards exited the half with a slim 7-5 advantage in the shot margin, as a closely-knit game was played by both defenses with just three corner kicks combined.
The second half featured a solid defensive stand by the Cardinals as they protected their 1-0 lead for the final 45 minutes of play despite allowing 10 shots to the Crusaders.
Perhaps the game-saving moment for the Cards came in the 57th minute as Capital's Luke Morais was awarded a penalty kick after a foul called inside the Otterbein box. Sophomore goalkeeper
Collin Hoffmann made an impressive save to halt the Crusader scoring opportunity and keep the lead intact.
Capital unloaded three additional shots over the next three minutes, two of which were blocked by the backline of the Cardinal defense led by Lunger.
The match ended with a combined 32 shots with the Crusaders owning a narrow 18-15 margin, with just a trio of shots between the two squads coming on goal. A tightly contested game was also called as 26 fouls were issued along with three yellow cards.
Hoffmann was awarded his seventh win in goal for the Cards after concluding the game with a pair of saves in 17 shots faced en route to his fourth shutout of the season.
Otterbein returns to Memorial Stadium for a two-game homestand beginning Tuesday night with a matchup against Ohio Northern. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
