by Colleen Loftus, communications student assistant

WASHINGTON - The Catholic University of America men's soccer team suffered a 4-0 loss to No. 1 Messiah on Saturday in Grantham, Pa., after keeping a scoreless first half against the famously nationally-ranked program.

Both teams fought heavily for midfield control in the first half, but Messiah pulled through in the second to seal Catholic's third straight loss.

The Cards managed to drill off decent shots against the aggressive Falcons defense, taking four to Messiah's nine in the first half. Senior Hunter Horvath totaled four shots alone in his 80:00 minutes of play, contributing to the team's 11 total shots on Messiah's net.

The second half put Catholic to the ultimate test as Messiah came out strong. The four goals took place within twenty minutes of one another, two of which were unassisted. The Falcons totaled 13 corner kicks in 90:00 minutes, compared to the Cardinals' one corner in the 85th.

Senior Torsten Meuschke started in goal for the Cardinals. Meuschke made five saves for Catholic against Messiah, holding off the firing Falcons to a simple 4-0 lead.

The Cardinals continue the season on Tuesday, September 16 at St. Mary's (Md.) at 4:00 p.m. 

-CUA-