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TIFFIN -- The Marietta College men’s soccer team scored three second half goals as the Pioneers came from behind to defeat Heidelberg, 3-1, Saturday.
The win was Joe Bergin’s 100th win as the Pioneers’ head coach.
Marietta improves to 3-6-3 on the season and 1-2-1 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. Heidelberg falls to 0-9-5 overall and 0-3-2 in conference play.
“To be honest I thought we were pretty good in the first half, but Berg found a way to take the lead, and we reacted in a negative way for the remainder of the half. Halftime was a bit old school and the boys responded,” Bergin said. “CJ’s (Bah) goal got us going and (Zach) Kern’s goal sealed it, but I have to say Colt’s (Long) energy off the bench was key to us having second half success.”
After nearly 41 minutes of scoreless action, Heidelberg finally broke through and got on the board. Heth Wilson scored with an assist from Kaiden Reed in the 41st minute. Marietta applied plenty of pressure on the Berg defense but couldn’t find the back of the net and trailed 1-0 at halftime.
Marietta freshman CJ Bah leveled the match in the 62nd minute scoring his first collegiate goal. Keeper Travis Lutz was credited with the assist after sending the ball up field to Bah.
Three minutes later, Marietta grabbed the lead. Zach Kern took the ball into the box, and his pass was deflected into the goal by a Heidelberg defender for an own goal. Kern extended the Pioneer lead in the final seconds of the match with an unassisted goal. His fifth of the season.
Lutz, playing all 90 minutes, posted seven saves in the match for Marietta. Xochiel Galvan went the distance in goal for Heidelberg and recorded seven saves as well.
Marietta returns home to host Capital on Wednesday at 7 p.m. for Student Appreciation Night.
WOMEN'S SOCCER
TIFFIN - The Marietta College women’s soccer team earned an important Ohio Athletic Conference road win late Saturday.
The Pioneers improved to 5-7-2 overall and 2-2-0 in OAC play, while Heidelberg fell to 4-10-0 overall and 1-4-0 in the conference.
“We put the pieces together today,” Marietta head coach Zack Votra. “That was a complete performance that saw us in a dominant position from start to finish.”
After weathering an early Heidelberg attack, the Pioneers broke through in the 30th minute. Just over two minutes after entering the match, Katie Heighberger found the back of the net at 29:10, finishing an unassisted opportunity to give Marietta a 1-0 advantage. The goal was Heighberger’s second of the season and sent the Pioneers into halftime with the 1-0 lead.
Heidelberg held a 6-3 edge in shots during the first half, but Agliolo turned away three first-half attempts to keep the Student Princes off the scoreboard.
The Student Princes pushed for the equalizer early in the second half and generated several dangerous chances, including consecutive saves by Pioneer goalkeeper Francesca Agliolo in the 48th minute and a shot that struck the crossbar less than two minutes later. Marietta responded by creating pressure of its own. The Pioneers earned three corner kicks in a span of just under three minutes midway through the second half, eventually doubling their lead at 61:07. Following a corner-kick sequence, Sierra Clark delivered the assist on a scoring strike by defender Tati Grigoryan, who recorded her first goal of the season to put Marietta ahead 2-0.
The Pioneer defense took control from there, limiting Heidelberg’s final opportunities while protecting the two-goal cushion. Heidelberg finished with an 11-9 advantage in total shots and a 7-6 edge in corner kicks, but Marietta made its chances count and never allowed the Student Princes to break through.
Agliolo completed the shutout with five saves, recording three stops in the opening half and two more after intermission. Heidelberg goalkeeper Maddi Springer finished with three saves.
The Pioneers will continue their road trip this Wednesday as they will travel to battle Capital University with a scheduled 7 p.m. start time.