In dramatic fashion, the Hopkins men's soccer team handed Muhlenberg its first conference loss of the season, beating the Mules 2-1 in double-overtime Saturday night.
In the 104th minute of the match, junior Evan Kleinberg's cross was kicked into the Muhlenberg goal by a Mules defender to give the Blue Jays a thrilling victory in Centennial Conference play. The win was the fourth straight for the Jays, who improved their record to 10-2-0 (3-1-0), while the Mules fell to 6-3-0 (3-1-0).
"It was a battle Saturday night, they came out hard but we got the better of them. [We] didn't give up [when we were] down 1-0 late in the game. The fans were wild, but we shut them up by handling business," Kleinberg said. "I think we're going to ride it through the rest of the season and don't expect to lose again. I'm feeling really good about making a real far run this year."
In the first 75 minutes, the tempo of the match was up and down, as neither team was able to establish itself. Muhlenberg scored first, when Mike Gehrmann took the ball, dribbled down the left side and fired a hard shot inside the left post in the 75th minute.
The Jays took less than three minutes to respond. Sophomore Sean Duggan played the ball to junior Scott Bukoski near the top of the box. Muhlenberg goalie Jason Daniels was drawn out, and Bukoski chipped the ball over his head for the score, knotting the score at 1-1. The goal was Bukoski's 10th of the season, which leads the team and Centennial Conference.
The rest of regulation saw the score tied at 1-1, and the game went into overtime. After a scoreless first overtime period, the game went into a second 10 minute overtime. At the 104-minute mark, senior Max Venker played a ball over the Mules defense to a streaking Kleinberg, who collected the ball near the end line and crossed it in front of the goal. A Muhlenberg defender, in an attempt to clear the ball, kicked it into the upper net, giving Hopkins the 2-1 victory on an own-goal.
"The Muhlenberg game was huge for us. We have had a good season so far, but were still seeking that huge win" Venker said. "Saturday night's win was very big for us as it got us that big away win. Coming up we have two really big home games against Dickinson and York [which] will ultimately decide where we land in the NCAA tournament. We're looking forward to finishing the season strong."
Senior goalie Ravi Gill, who was named Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week, echoed Venker's sentiment.
"The Muhlenberg game was a big win for us, both in terms of our position in the table as well as the confidence boost that it gave us" Gill said.
"Going down a goal late and then coming back to win a tough overtime game on the road in front of a hostile crowd is a testament to the character of the team. We didn't necessarily play our best soccer, but we found ways to get results, and that's what good teams do. If we can continue to do that, then we can definitely make a big postseason run," he said.
Despite giving up a goal, which broke his scoreless streak at 429 minute at 19 seconds, Gill recorded two saves during the match, helping to preserve the Jays winning streak.
Since losing to Swarthmore on September 19, Hopkins has reeled off four straight wins, playing with a renewed sense of urgency and pride. While many team members credit senior Neil MacLean's Latin war chant, of which Gill said "nothing gets a group of men going more than a Latin war chant," the team will have to continue to play well as it faces a tough part of its schedule.
"We have some important games coming up that are going to have big implications in terms of where we stand for the postseason tournaments. Dickinson is a tough conference opponent, so to get a result against them would be huge. The York game will be important as well. Even though they're not in our conference, they are a nationally ranked team and getting a result against them would definitely help us prepare for postseason play" Gill said.
The Blue Jays next play on Saturday, October 10, when Dickinson visits Homewood Field. The Centennial Conference game is slated to start at 4:00 p.m.
