GRANVILLE, Ohio (September 29, 2021) – The Denison University men's soccer team jumped on top of the No. 13 nationally-ranked team in the country, Otterbein University, by a score of 1-0 midway through the first half, and that score stood until the final four minutes of regulation as the Big Red and the Cardinals ultimately settled for a 1-1 draw on Wednesday night on Barclary-Thomsen Field.
The goal for Denison (4-3-1 overall) came in the 26th minute off the foot of
Vitor Rocha, who had two more shot attempts saved in the first five minutes of the second half and then missed high in the 55th minute.
Rocha led Denison with six total shots, four of which were on goal, while
Cameron McIntosh added three shot attempts.
In the 84th minute,
Ethan Miracle had a shot saved, but just over three minutes later, Otterben (6-0-2) finally got one past the Denison defense.
In the end, Otterbein had only three shots on goal the entire 110 minutes.
The Big Red outshot the Cardinals 2-0 in the first overtime but did not put up an official shot in the second.
"Tonight was our most compete performance of the year, and the guys played great," said Denison's Head Coach
Brandon Bianco. "We obviously are disappointed with how things finished, but we will build on this strong performance as we focus on league play."
It was a positive result for a Denison team that was looking for its second upset at home over a top-15 nationally-ranked team this season, but in the end, the Big Red will now turn their sights back onto conference play as they host Allegheny College at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 2, during Big Red Weekend.
