Marietta men's soccer remains tough at home with 3-1 win over rival Muskingum
Pioneers begin four game road trip Saturday at Capital

Oct. 14, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College men's soccer team came away with a decisive, 3-1 victory Tuesday (Oct. 14) afternoon against visiting Muskingum College. The win improved Marietta's record to 7-3-3 overall and 2-1-1 in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC). The Muskies fell to 3-9-2 overall and 0-3-1 in the OAC.

Marietta took a 1-0 advantage in the 21st minute when the Pioneers scored a goal in transition. Senior midfielder Matt Sleyzak (Twinsburg) carried the ball from the backfield deep into Muskie territory. He then split a pair of defenders and passed the ball through them to junior forward Kyle Muth (Twinsburg), who was racing toward the goal. Sleyzak’s pass drew out the Muskingum keeper, and Muth curled a shot around him, just inside the near post, for his sixth goal of the season.

The score remained 1-0 in favor of Marietta into halftime and until the 73rd minute when the Pioneers added an insurance goal to increase their lead to 2-0. Senior forward Seita Kawamoto (Ebina, Kanagaua, Japan) made the most of pass from senior forward Kyle Blankenship (Hilliard/Darby) through the legs of a defender inside the six-yard box by firing a shot inside the far post for his third goal of the year.

Marietta made it 3-0 in 80th minute when senior midfielder Drew Craig (Slippery Rock, Pa.) touched a ball through to junior defender Dele Adedapo (Gahanna/Bexley) just outside the 18-yard box, who then sent a shot out of the Muskie keeper’s reach and into the far side of the net. It was Adedapo’s seventh goal of the season.

Muskingum broke the shutout with a goal in the 90th minute. Cam Jonard scored on a loose ball inside the box following a free kick to make the final score 3-1.

Marietta out-shot Muskingum 17-7 overall, including 14-4 in shots on goal. Marietta senior keeper Steve Hagenau (Clearwater, Fla./Central Catholic) made three saves in the win. Muskingum keeper Matthew Seas had 11 saves in the loss.

Marietta is back in action on Saturday (Oct. 18) afternoon when the Pioneers take on host Capital University at 3 p.m. in Columbus.