MOUNT VERNON, Ohio - In its first-ever trip to Ohio for a conference match, the Goshen College men's soccer team was handed a 5-1 defeat at the hands of host Mount Vernon Nazarene University Wednesday afternoon.

In their second year in the Crossroads League, the Cougars avenged a 5-0 loss last season to the Maple Leafs in their first ever league meeting.

"I knew traveling four and a half hours to Mount Vernon would be a tough test for us, but I had no idea that we were going to give up five goals," head coach Tavi Mounsithiraj admitted.  "Give credit to the MVNU side, they are playing as well as any other team in the league.  For us, we still cannot find any rhythm in our game offensively or defensively."

By the time the match was 52 minutes in, Mount Vernon had already stormed to a 4-0 lead with goals from Clint Eitsey, Brian Petak, Petr Vaughan and Marc Cannon.  Goshen managed to pull one back just a minute later as Joel Pepala stole the ball from the defense, but even that was answered quickly.  Less than two minutes after the Leafs' struck, Petak added his second of the match and the hosts cruised to the win.

Mount Vernon held a 15-12 advantage on shots.  They also had an 8-7 lead in shots on frame making the most of its opportunities, scoring on five of eight attempts on target.

"The boys know that time is running out for us to get back on the winning way," Mounsithiraj added.  "We have three important games left in the conference and every game is a must win for us if we want to take part in the postseason tournament."

Goshen (6-7-1, 1-4-1 CL) is now under .500 for the first time since dropping the season opener as they head into a home tilt with Marian University at 7 p.m. Saturday night.