Calvin University

HOLLAND, Mich. – Under the Friday night lights of Van Andel Stadium, the Calvin men's soccer team pulled out the most dramatic win in program history, defeating rival Hope 3-2 on a goal in the final second of regulation.

Junior Jake Ziolo's bending, left-footed shot from the right wing curled over the outstretched arms of Hope goalkeeper Cooper Hutt and into the back of the net as time expired. 

INSTAGRAM LINK TO JAKE ZIOLO GAME-WINNING GOAL

Ziolo's goal completed a frantic Calvin comeback that saw the Knights score two goals in the final 8:08 of regulation.

Senior Zac Brooks (Lone Tree, Colo./Valor Christian HS) tied the game at two, blasting in a rebound off a shot by senior Hans Pruis (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian HS) that had been saved by Hutt but fell on one hop to Brooks.

With the game level, Calvin (11-1-2 overall) continued to press in the final minutes. With under five seconds to play, Pruis received  pass near the top of the 18-yard box and slid short pass to the right side of the box to Ziolo (Dublin, Oh./Dublin Jerome HS). Ziolo one-timed the pass and it curled gracefully over the goalkeeper and into the far top shelf of the net for the dramatic winner.

The goal was given immediately by the lead referee. A short post-match conference with the two assistant referees ensued. After a short discussion, the initial call was upheld and the Knights gained the dramatic rivalry win.

"I just saw Hans (Pruis) pick up the ball and I was coming through on the overlap," said Ziolo of the winning play. "I knew there was very little time (left) and I just tried to get something on target and it ended up working. Super exciting, but honestly, I'm Just happy for the win. We got down a goal and had to find a way back. We worked together as a team and got the result. That's what I'm most happy about."

Friday's game was played with a strong north-to-south wind. Calvin had the wind at its back in the first half but struggled to adjust to the conditions until senior Chase Alexandre (Brighton, NY/Brighton HS) blasted home a shot from 25 yards in the 33^rd minute that gave the Knights a 1-0 lead. Calvin carried the lead to halftime.

Hope (8-2-3 overall, 1-1-2 MIAA) came out firing in the second half. With the wind at its back, Hope began to send shots at goal and won a corner off a Calvin deflection in the 51^st minute. Hope then equalized on the corner as Rory Cobb sent a ball to the far post that Jack Lowman was able to head in amidst a scrum of players battling for position.

Hope then won a free kick along the right wing in the 69^th minute and used the set piece to take the lead. Lowman lofted the free kick to the left side of the six-yard box. Caden Chenlo was able to head the ball to the right and Josh Weigel followed with a header to the far corner of the net for a 2-1 Hope lead.

The go-ahead goal by Hope came moments after Calvin had appeared to take a 2-1 lead on the other end of the pitch but had a goal waived off by an offside call. 

Battling the wind and the home crowd of more than 1,300 fans, Calvin pushed for an equalizer of its own and finally found the back of the net on the rebound shot by Brooks with under 10 minutes to play.

Ranked 12^th nationally, Calvin owned the final minutes of play with ball possession with the final play emblematic of its never-give-up final push.

Hope finished with a 14-13 shots at goal advantage including 11-10 in the second half.

Junior goalkeeper John Hargett (Powell, Oh./Oletangy HS) had four saves for Calvin – all of which came in the second half when Hope began to pepper the Calvin goal. Hutt had three saves for Hope.

For the time being, the win moves Calvin into first place in the MIAA standings with 10 points (3-0-1) with Kalamazoo a point behind the Knights with the Hornets set to host Albion Saturday night at 7 p.m.

Calvin has three regular season MIAA games left on its schedule with the Knights set to face Trine and Olivet next week and Kalamazoo on October 27.

COACHES COMMENT: "Always exciting when these two teams get together. It's a campus-wide rivalry for both institutions," said Calvin head men's soccer coach Ryan Souders. "Just an incredible college soccer game. I thought Hope put the screws to us there a little bit in the second half but super proud of our group. They did not give up. Down a goal but fought back to get an equalizer. What can you say about Jake's (winning) shot…..I'm not sure you could place it any better. Just super proud of the guys for continuing to fight. The goal at the end will get the highlight but it really was a 90-minute fight that our group was committed to. They have so much to be proud of tonight."

NEXT UP: Calvin will host Trine next Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Calvin Soccer Stadium.