GROSSASPACH, Germany (Interstat) — Dickson Abiama scored in the 35th minute and RW Essen made the lone goal stand in a 1-0 victory over Grossaspach on Sunday in a German third-division match. Abiama played 88 minutes before being substituted, and his first-half finish separated the visiting side from the home team in a contest marked by early bookings and a tight second half. RW Essen improved its position with the result, while Grossaspach was left to rue chances that did not produce an equalizer. The visitors defended their narrow lead through the closing stages and secured the win.

The match turned early when Grossaspach picked up yellow cards in the sixth and 15th minutes. Celiktas was booked in the sixth, and Eisele followed in the 15th as the home side struggled to settle into a clean rhythm. RW Essen took advantage in the 35th minute when Abiama scored, with Nick Batzner credited with the assist. Batzner played 46 minutes in the match and provided the key pass on the only goal. Grossaspach had the better of some possession after the break but could not turn it into a goal.

RW Essen’s Janssen was shown a yellow card in the 56th minute as the visitors protected their advantage. Grossaspach made a double substitution at halftime involving Celiktas and Eisele, and RW Essen made a change involving Batzner at the same point. RW Essen later made substitutions involving Hofmann and Pesch in the 75th minute, and Brumme in the 82nd. Grossaspach’s substitutions included Stoppel in the 78th minute and Maier in the 88th. RW Essen’s final change involved Abiama in the 88th minute.

Grossaspach pressed for a response but could not break through. RW Essen’s defense held firm over the final stretch, and the visitors closed out the one-goal win. RW Essen managed the closing minutes without conceding again, preserving the clean sheet. The final whistle confirmed the margin. The result gave RW Essen its seventh win in this competition this season against two losses and three draws. Grossaspach’s record in this competition now stands at three wins, six losses and three draws.

Across all competitions, RW Essen is now seven wins, three losses and four draws. Grossaspach is now three wins, seven losses and four draws. RW Essen entered the match after a 2-1 home loss to RB Leipzig, while Grossaspach had lost 4-2 at home to Augsburg in its previous outing. Earlier in the campaign, RW Essen had also posted wins over Regensburg, Fortuna Koln, SV Waldhof Mannheim, Wurzburg and Viktoria Koln, along with draws against Preussen Munster, Arminia Bielefeld and Hansa. Grossaspach’s recent run included a win over Preussen Munster, draws with Viktoria Koln, Kaiserslautern, Verl and TSV Havelse, and a win over Hoffenheim II. The victory gave RW Essen the advantage in a tightly contested fixture.

RW Essen’s recent form also included a 6-2 home win over Wurzburg, a 1-0 home win over Viktoria Koln, a 3-3 draw at Preussen Munster, a 2-2 draw at Arminia Bielefeld and a 1-0 loss at Ingolstadt. Grossaspach had lost 7-1 at Wehen, 5-1 at home to Mannheim and 2-1 at Saarbrucken, while drawing 1-1 with Kaiserslautern and Verl and 2-2 at TSV Havelse. RW Essen will next host Alemannia Aachen, and Grossaspach will visit Hansa. Both clubs will continue their third-division schedules after the weekend.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of RW Essen 2, Grossaspach 1. Interstat’s ELO system had projected RW Essen with a 52.4 percent probability to win. RW Essen had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 0.5. The total score of 1 went over the over/under line of 3.