ASHLAND, VA – The Hampden-Sydney soccer team improved to 6-2-1 (2-1 ODAC) on the season with a 1-0 shutout of ODAC-rival Randolph-Macon College. With the loss, the Yellow Jackets dropped to 2-7 (0-2 ODAC).

The Tigers dominated the early part of the game with numerous shots on goal; however the Tigers were unable to find the back of the net until the 30th minute. The Tigers scored as sophomore forward Jason Powell (Marietta, GA/Pope) crossed a ball in front of the Randolph-Macon goal. The Yellow Jacket's goalkeeper mishandled the cross and sophomore forward Reed Westra (Chester, VA/L.C. Bird) was able to control the ball and pass it to freshman defender Christopher Tait (Nokesville, VA/Brentsville) who fired a shot in to the back of the net to give the Tigers a 1-0 advantage. The goal was Tait's first of his career and comes against the team for which his brother, David Tait, played on for four seasons. For the remainder of the game, both teams went back and forth attempting to capitalize on quality chances, but neither team was able to score. Hampden-Sydney goalkeeper Ben Marchetti (Richmond, VA/Benedictine) preserved the shutout for the Tigers as he made six saves.

This is a big win for the Tigers, as head coach Josh Laux states, "I am extremely pleased with the way we played in the first half; however, we were unable to bury our chances and that kept them in the game. You have to give credit to their guys for the way they played in the second half, but we were able to grit it out. That is the first Hampden-Sydney team to win at Macon in at least ten years."

Hampden-Sydney returns to action on the road against ODAC-foe Emory and Henry College on Saturday, September 30. The game is set to start at 3:00 pm.