WILMINGTON, Ohio – Another draw (albeit through a different format) was ultimately in store for Otterbein on the men's soccer pitch Wednesday night, as the Cardinals left Wilmington in a scoreless deadlock after two weather delays.

The prime Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) showdown was stopped twice due to lightning, once in the 61st minute and again in the 76th, before it was officially called. Otterbein remains unbeaten in league play nonetheless after a third draw in four matches.

Wilmington, entering the night fresh off wins against Capital and Baldwin Wallace, now sits a healthy 7-4-2 overall this year.

The Quakers held a decent amount of possession to begin the contest and both teams later saw opportunities midway through the first period. Otterbein leading scorer Will Isaac had a shot saved at the 27:32 mark before a flurry of Wilmington attempts (less than a minute later) were all thwarted by the Cardinal defense…

Casey Thompson was forced to make a pair of saves in the semi-frantic sequence, while a later attempt in the next minute from Yusef Muqtadir was blocked by a defender. Wilmington went into the break with an 8-4 shot advantage.

A rejuvenated Otterbein squad came out of intermission with a renewed sense of energy, firing three shots on goal over the first 10 minutes. Silver Abraham missed wide left, Wilmington keeper Thomas Grimes stopped another rip from Isaac 49 seconds later, and Luke Crockett also saw his shot saved at the 56:07 mark.

Wilmington's Casey Miller hit the post late in the 57th minute and a follow-up by Grant Murray was redirected by the Cardinal back line. The match went into its first lightning delay moments after that and picked back up roughly 40 minutes (of real time) later.

Both sides traded possession over the brief 15 minutes back on the field before the sky featured more lightning, and the match was officially declared a draw. The Quakers finished with a 14-8 edge in total shots, although a handful were blocked from a decent ways out after just getting off the foot.

Thompson finished with five saves and the matchup only saw a few corner kicks.

Otterbein will get back on the road in less than 72 hours, traveling over to Tiffin for a contest with Heidelberg come Saturday afternoon.