Marietta soccer opens season with a 1-1 tie against Rochester (Mich.)
Shootout loss send Pioneers into Sunday's consolation game

Sept. 1, 2007
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Pioneers' men's soccer team took the field, the first time this season, against Rochester (Mich.) College Saturday (Sept. 1) evening in the final game of day one at the Marietta College Soccer Classic at Marietta Field. Both teams battled for 110 minutes only for the game to end in a 1-1 tie. However, since it was a tournament, penalty kicks decided who would advance to Sunday's championship game. The Warriors did just that by winning the shootout 9-8.

Marietta (0-0-1) will now play Juniata (Pa.) College in the consolation game Sunday at 11 a.m., while Hiram College will take on Rochester in the finals at 3 p.m. Hiram defeated Juniata 4-2 earlier in the day.

Neither team managed a goal in the first half, although the Pioneers' dominated the time of possession and had their chances.

Marietta, who played the final 66 minutes with just 10 players, took a 1-0 lead in the 60th minute. Sophomore Kyle Muth (Twinsburg), who entered the second half less than a minute earlier, picked up the goal, his first of the year. Junior Kyle Blankenship (Galloway/Hilliard Darby) found Muth with a cross just inside the box, and Muth drove it home with a sliding kick.

Rochester tied the game in the 80th minute, when Jon Rokowski got a shot by Marietta's keeper Thaddeus Cochran (Westerville/Worthington Christian). Rokowski was on a breakaway and found an opening in the lower left side of the net.

Marietta out-shot Rochester 22-18 in the game, including 13-11 in shots on goal.

Cochran finished with 12 saves, while Dave Ristich had 10 for the Warriors.