On Saturday, the men’s soccer team traveled to New Concord, Ohio to compete against Muskingum University. They faced the Fighting Muskies and came away with a statement 7-0 win, before rolling over Marietta College 5-0 on the road to improve their season record to a perfect 7-0 and tie for No. 3 ranking in the country.

The game against Muskingum featured six goal scorers, while Jack Pedreschi ’25, William Doenges ’23 and Fred Pardue ’24 combined for a shutout, the team’s third straight clean sheet. Matt Nguyen ’26, who scored the Owls’ fourth goal, praised his teammates for their play as a cohesive unit, which helped the team find success against the Fighting Muskies. “It was nice to see us be able to finish a bunch of our chances,” Nguyen wrote in an email to the Collegian.

Along with Nguyen, Alem Duratovic ’25 scored two goals during this game. Though the team came away with a big win, Duratovic felt as though the team could’ve played even better. “There were many moments where we dropped down to the level of our opponent and let them into the game,” Duratovic wrote in an email to the Collegian. “Regardless of the score being 7-0, we need to make less mistakes on the ball.”

On Wednesday, Kenyon issued a 5-0 thrashing to Marietta. Four Owls players scored a goal against the Pioneers with the other goal being an own goal. Duratovic continued to add to his goal count; he has now found the back of the net four times in the past five games and leads the team in goals (8) and points (17). Goalkeepers Pedreschi and Doenges both stood idle for most of the game as they only were called on to make three saves.

With the Owls outscoring their opponents in the past two games, excitement is building both within the team and around campus. Duratovic is hoping to make it to the Final Four, something last accomplished in 1996. “We want to win all of our games, we don’t want to lose on Mavec [Field],” he said. 

Acting President Jeff Bowman has taken notice of the Owls ascent from their No. 17 preseason ranking. “I saw a scrimmage and a game earlier. They’re very strong and it’s very exciting to watch them play,” he said. “There’s a lot of excitement with the soccer team, and it’s done great work and [is] clearly going to have a really exciting season.” The team has been on the road for the last six games but will play their second home game of the season on Saturday against Case Western Reserve University at 3:30 p.m.