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WESTERVILLE, Ohio – A very tight and evenly-played men's soccer showdown ultimately ended up being decided by a penalty kick goal Sunday afternoon inside Memorial Stadium, as visiting Capital escaped host Otterbein by a final score of 1-0.

The Cardinals, finishing the regular season with a 3-5-1 overall record, will unfortunately miss out on the six-team Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament as a result. Capital improves to 4-5 on the year.

Both sides went back and forth early, exchanging opportunities on a few set pieces and free kicks. Capital eventually earned the PK after a Crusader forward was contacted just inside the top of the box while pushing forward during a sequence.

Jack Francisco stutter-stepped and promptly finished the attempt lower left. Capital carried that 1-0 lead into the break.

Otterbein began pushing forward in the second half looking for an equalizer, with the speedy Paul Hensley finding and creating space on the wing. The Cards looked like they might be on the verge of tying the match when a header from Drew Holman was sailing upper 90, but a Capital defender was there to head the ball up… into the crossbar, and over the goal for a team save.

Hensley also had a lofting ball into the box nail the crossbar, then saw another prime moment after chasing down a through ball. Capital goalie Kellen Sargent charged out to meet Hensley, who just narrowly missed a shot outside the left post.

Otterbein finished with a 12-9 shot advantage while Capital had the slight edge in corner kicks, 6-5. The physical contest saw a combined 22 fouls.