Skip To Main Content

Kenyon College Athletics

Martens_Joey_1MSOC23
Graham Stokes
1
Winner Kenyon KENYON (9-3-0, 3-0-0)
0
Denison DENISON (7-3-2, 1-1-1)
Winner
Kenyon KENYON
(9-3-0, 3-0-0)
1
Final
0
Denison DENISON
(7-3-2, 1-1-1)
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Kenyon KENYON 1 0 1
Denison DENISON 0 0 0

Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

Martens powers Owls past Big Red

GRANVILLE, OH – The Kenyon College men's soccer team (9-3) traveled to rival Denison University's Deeds Field on Saturday night for a North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) matchup. In a tightly contested physical game that saw four yellow cards and 36 fouls between the two teams, a goal by junior Joey Martens in the first half was the deciding factor as the Owls won 1-0. 

The Owls entered the game with a 53-game undefeated stretch in NCAC regular season play, sitting atop the conference with six points. The Big Red (7-3-2) are tied for second with four points, but historically Kenyon has dominated the matchup, winning nine of its last ten matches. 

The match began with Denison applying consistent pressure and gaining an edge in possession, registering the first two shots and a corner within the first ten minutes of play. However, in the 20th minute, Aidan Burns heaved a high-arcing throw from the far side of the field toward the Denison net. A bouncing ball found Eamon Dujakovich, who fired a shot which was redirected right to Martens, who sent two consecutive shots at the Big Red keeper, the second of which found the back of the net to send the Owls up 1-0. 

The goal, Martens' third of the season, kept the Owls ahead going into the half. Offensively, Kenyon also had good chances to score off the feet of Pablo Portillo, Dujakovich, and Atli Hrafnkelsson on the way to outshooting the Big Red 11-2 in the first half while holding a 3-1 corner advantage. 

Defensively, Jack Pedreschi made one save, while the rest of the Kenyon defense swarmed to the ball with a sense of urgency and thwarted any decent Denison chances. 

The second half began similarly to the first, with Denison registering the early shots and corner chances. When possession swung back to Kenyon, the team racked up three straight shots with 30 minutes to play in the match to give the shot advantage back to the Owls. 

Ten minutes later, Denison had perhaps its best chances of the game. Two shots by Jake Krueger and another by Kameron Kist all led to Pedreschi saves and kept the Owls up by one moving into the final third of the half. 

As time ticked toward zero, the game got more physical as Denison desperately tried to create offensive opportunities. A header from Henri Heyes saved by Pedreschi and near misses off of long shots stirred up the home crowd with less than 30 seconds remaining, but the Owls remained poised and cleared the ball every time Denison pressed offensively to secure the 1-0 win. 

For the game, the Owls outshot the Big Red 15-9 overall and 6-5 in shots on goal. Fueled by Pedreschi's five saves, the win marked the team's sixth shutout of the season. 

The Owls have now won four matches in a row and are back in action on Tuesday as the they remain on the road to face The College of Wooster Fighting Scots at 4 p.m. for another NCAC showdown. 

 
Print Friendly Version