LEAD
WATERTOWN, Wis. — The Sabercats snatched their fourth straight win this afternoon with a 1-0 shutout of rivals, Faith Baptist, in an NCCAA Top-10 matchup to remember.
Robbie Lemon scored the only goal of the game just after halftime, knocking in a deflected shot to give the Sabercats the only goal they needed. The win gave the Sabercats and goalkeeper Joe Shank their third shutout win this week.
OVERVIEW
- Result: No. 10 Maranatha 1-0 No. 6 Faith
- Venue: Maranatha Baptist University
- Location: Watertown, Wis.
- Attendance: 402
- Record: MBU (6-2-1), FBBC (6-2-1)
STORY
The first half was cagey, as neither team created any sort of real momentum. Will Alsup almost marked his first collegiate start with a goal about midway through the first half, but the freshman's header glanced just wide of the post off of a free kick delivery from Aaron Jones. At the other end of the field, Shank was tested by a shot from inside the penalty area, but the senior goalkeeper snatched it cleanly to keep Faith off the scoreboard.
After the Parents' Day halftime ceremony, the Sabercats had a chance to regroup and get back into a rhythm, and they took it.
Just a couple of minutes into the second half, the Sabercats earned a couple of corner kicks, the second of which eventually led to a goal, as Lemon collected a half-cleared ball in the Faith penalty area, found space on his left foot, and put a shot towards the far corner that was deflected into the roof of the net off of a Faith defender. It didn't matter how it came, all the Sabercats needed was a go-ahead goal to spark life into an otherwise stalemated rivalry matchup.
For the rest of the second half, it was anyone's game, but it came down to simply managing the clock for the Sabercats. By the end of the 90 minutes, Joe Shank had made 4 saves and Aaron Jones made multiple shot-preventing plays in the Sabercats' back line to frustrated the Eagles, keep the shutout intact, and secure the Sabercats' fourth consecutive win for the 2025 season.
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Maranatha Starters: 1- Shank, 2- Alsup, 5- Jones (C), 6- Johnson, 7- Lemon, 8- M. Ribeiro, 11- Ca. Beachell (C), 12- Greene (C), 13- Donovan, 14- Cl. Beachell, 19- Miller
STATS
- Shot count: Maranatha 6-9 Faith
- Last time: Maranatha beat Faith 3-0 at home during the 2024 season
- Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series 14-2-1
OPPONENTS
- Faith competes in the NCCAA Midwest Christian College Conference (NCCAA DII)
- Faith finished last season with a 7-13-1 record
NEXT
The Sabercats will play at Ripon on Tuesday with a kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Follow at mbusabercats.com/schedule.
