HIRAM, Ohio – September 22, 2023 – A relentless effort kept Hiram close in a big matchup against the No. 18 team in Division III men's soccer, Mount Union, as the Terriers limited their opposition's scoring opportunities in a 2-0 loss on Friday evening at Henry Field.

The Purple Raiders, who improved to 8-0, had just 8 shots on goal in the game and didn't score for the entirety of the second half. Hiram's defensive unit held strong, with Travis Shrout, Jeremy Sgro, Simon Schonfeld and goalkeeper Sean Rubin each playing the full 90 minutes.

The Terriers put up a strong fight, and nearly had a chance to crack the scoring column early in the second half. The game moves Hiram one game closer to its conference schedule, which begins on Saturday, September 30 against Denison. Head coach Joe Chmura and company have one more non-conference game before then.

Mount Union was able to take advantage of a loose ball and score in the second minute of the game; Omar Najjar stole a Hiram pass and ripped a shot about 20 yards past the Hiram defense. Despite a deflection, the ball still found its way through the right side of the net.

Hiram would get a few shot attempts from Matt Callan and Blake Kubasak before the Purple Raiders scored again on a breakaway from Kabiona Ramadhani and Alex Depperschmidt, which eventually led to a Tyler Harsch goal.

The remainder of the half was scoreless, as Hiram fended off a pair of corner kicks to head to the locker room trailing, 2-0.

In the 53^rd minute, Hiram got one of its best scoring opportunities in the game. Keagan Le'Roux nearly got the ball past the opposing goalie before Jayden Julian and Jimmy Zeilmann both unleashed a pair of high-speed shots, too. It remained a two-goal deficit, but momentum had trended toward the home team.

Both teams dug into their depth for the remainder of the contest, with Mount Union having 20 different players and Hiram featuring 19 players. The Terriers had an answer for every Mount Union attack, as they outshot their opposition, 7-5, over the final 45 minutes. The Purple Raiders would have 10 corner kicks in the game, none of which led to a goal.

Hiram will play its final non-conference game of the season on Wednesday, when it travels to New Concord, Ohio to take on Muskingum at 7 p.m. from the North Athletic Turf Field.