INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The bad news: The Maple Leafs losing streak reached six games with a 4-0 loss at Marian University on Saturday.

The good news: Goshen is through the toughest part of its schedule, facing teams that have a combined 16-7-1 mark in the MCC so far this season.  The Leafs will get a crack this week at Taylor University and Huntington University, who have combined to go 1-9-1 in conference play in 2009.

Back to Saturday.  Head coach Thavisith Mounsithiraj knew Marian – one of only three teams in the nation without a loss – was going to be a tough match up for his struggling offense.  The Knights came into the match on a 12-match winning streak and had allowed just two goals all season in a national leading 11 shutouts.

“Marian definitely possesses all the parts to defend their MCC title,” Mounsithiraj said.  “We knew it was going to be a challenge because of their size, skill, depth and artificial playing surface.  Liz Nafziger said it well at halftime that their play was flawless.”

It was a similar situation when the squads met last year in Goshen.  The Leafs pushed the unbeaten Knights to the limit defensively before Marian scored twice in the last 20 minutes on way to an eventual MCC Tournament Championship.

Saturday was similar in many ways.  Goshen’s offense – which has scored just twice during their recent skid – was able to mount very little offensive attack.  They managed just three shots overall, including one on frame.  However, they also were able to keep Marian off the scoreboard for long periods of time.

The Knights did breakthrough in the 29th minute on a Katy Toth header, but the Leafs held Marian – ranked in the top 25 in the country in goals – to just six shots in the first half and trailed by just the single goal going into halftime.

A ten-minute stretch shortly after the second half started was all Marian needed to put the match away for good.  The Knights scored three times in the span as they went on for the 4-0 win.

Goshen continues to look for their first MCC win of the season on Wednesday as they host Taylor University.  Kick off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at the Goshen College Soccer Complex.  If you are unable to make it to the game, the match will be presented via a tape delayed Internet broadcast on Thursday afternoon.  Check back at www.goleafs.net for more details when they are available.

“We have two key matches coming up at home that is a must-win situation for us to qualify for the postseason MCC tournament,” Mounsithiraj concluded.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 19th, 2009 and is filed under Main Feature, News, Women's Soccer.