An early goal by sophomore Dylan Andrew eventually led to a 3-0 win by Wabash at Hiram Saturday afternoon in North Coast Athletic Conference men’s soccer.
Andrew scored his fifth goal of the season in the ninth minute of the match to put the Little Giants up 1-0. Mark Babcock added a second goal on a penalty kick in the 33rd minute while the Wabash defense, led by goalkeeper Pat West, kept the Terriers off the scoreboard in the opening period.
“Considering the condition of the field with the rain and snow Hiram received, we played some very good soccer. Our players really battled, particularly leading 2-0 at halftime. We talked about shutting Hiram out at halftime --- playing our best defense and keeping them off the scoreboard.”
The Little Giants did just that, with West making two saves on five Hiram second half shots. West finished the match with five total saves. Hiram outshot Wabash 12-8 overall.
Sophomore Austin Jennings added an insurance goal in the 59th minute, his fifth goal of the season.
“I’m extremely proud of the way we rebounded today from Wednesday’s loss to Wittenberg. Today we showed the way we can play. We were authoritative in our play today. Now we have to carry that type of effort over to two key matches this week --- at Transylvania on Wednesday and at home Saturday against nationally-ranked Ohio Wesleyan (#2 in the National Soccer Coaches Association poll).”
“We showed a lot of determination today with two good goals and a penalty,” assistant coach Ben Esbaum added.
Wabash moves to 8-6-1 with the victory and are even in NCAC matches with a 3-3 record. The eight victories are the most for a Wabash soccer team since the 2003 team finished 8-9-1 for the season.
