Williamstown, Mass – It was a gritty, battle for the badge match today between the Messiah University Falcons (14-6-2) and the Williams College Ephs (12-4-3). There was never a clear front-runner, as both teams had their fair share of opportunities, coming from long passes and combination play matched with an equal if not greater set of brilliant defensive actions and recoveries that saw the 90 end 0-0 and the match go to over time.
As soon as the overtime whistle was blown, both sides battled like their life depended on it, because it did, and yet neither team distinguished themselves as deserving to win. Soccer, however, is a game of moments, and a brilliant, beautiful moment at the start of the second overtime period would determine the winner of the match. In the 101st minute, sophomore Kellan Grace played an over the top pass into the run of junior Henry Kirkman. Kirkman, with a deft touch, created enough space for a shot that he tucked under the dive of Messiah goalkeeper Adam Carter into the back of the net, ending the game that seemed like it would never end and sending Williams into the round of the 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
Williams showed strong defensive resolve early. In the 8th minute of play, the Ephs repelled a dangerous multi-pronged attack thanks to consecutive defensive recoveries from sophomore Atticus Ross and junior Sam Gibson. First, it was Ross who, in an excellent slide tackle, stripped the ball off of Falcon forward Patrick Lee, and then it was Gibson who smothered the second ball chance by stealing the ball off attacker Sam Phillips. Gibson was in his back pocket for the entire match. Phillips would attempt to take him on in the 18th and 20th minutes, but Gibson stood him up both times.
Falcon Sam Phillips would pop up again In the 16th minute of play when he got on the end of a good cross into the box and headed the ball on frame. Eph senior goalkeeper Ben Diffley, well positioned, was able to make the save with little worry.
As the half went on, the Ephs found some attacking form. In the 27th minute, first year Ali Coleman surely should have had a penalty when he weaved his way around Messiah midfielder Jarec Marlote, but was tripped up. Sophomore Spencer Mix got a shot off a second ball but it went just over the crossbar. The Williams bench was furious at the no-call, and they had every right to be, but there is no video review in the NCAA Tournament, so they had no choice but to move on.
In the 32nd minute, keeper Ben Diffley hit a well-placed pass into the box. Atticus Ross rose above his defender and back-headed the ball on frame, but Falcone goalkeeper Adam Carter was in the right spot and made the save.
In what may have been the Ephs' best chance of the half, in the the 37th minute of play, sophomores Andrew Coelho and Kellan Grace engaged in some clever combination play, leading to a cross that found Spencer Mix with his back to goal. Mix deftly shifted his body weight and was able to spin his defender and get a shot off, but, unfortunately for Williams, it went just over the bar for a Messiah goal kick.
In the 39th minute, Atticus Ross won a second ball in the midfield that he was able to direct to first year Lorcan Mitchell who had made an angled run at goal. Lorcan pushed the rock into the box and got a shot off, but Falcon defender Matt Griffin did just enough to get Mitchell off balance. The shot took a deflection, and Messiah keeper Adam Carter made the save.
The gritty first half ended 0-0.
The second half saw more end-to-end defensive play from the two sides. The life-or-death nature of this NCAA match came through in both teams fighting for every ball, inch of space, and possible chance. In the 51st minute of play, senior Felipe Gutierrez did an excellent job forcing Messiah forward Patrick Lee into a corner as he was running at goal. Gutierrez turned a dangerous opportunity for the Falcons into a half-chance, angled shot that Ben Diffely had no problem dealing with.
Diffley's best save of the match came in the 61st minute of play when a long pass into the Williams box found Falcon forward Matt Shumaker, who got a shot off in the danger zone, forcing Ben Diffley to go to ground to prevent Messiah from taking the lead.
Williams, like in the first half, would hit their attacking stride in the later minutes of the match. In the 73rd minute, Kellan Grace, surging up the right wing, flicked the ball into the box. Spencer Mix, in a kind of hidden run, caught the Messiah defense by surprise and got his head on the flick, but keeper Adam Carter was ready at the near post to make the save.
In the 83rd minute, Felipe Gutierrez came up big yet again, with a great backheel defensive stop to break up a two-on-one attack pass from Messiah defender Jonatha Kid, that had it not been for Gutierrez's stop, almost certainly would have found the feet of forward Patrick Lee through on goal. Thanks to the captain, the Ephs won back possession and were able to get the ball to Ali Coleman on the wing. Coleman, one-on-one with his defender, took a big touch forward and, with sheer pace and clever timing, was able to get around him. The first year, running into space on the right wing rocketed a powerful shot on goal, but keeper Matt Shumaker came up big and made the save. Both sides battled hard for a game-winner, but the match would end 0-0 and head to golden goal over time.
Two minutes into overtime, in the 92nd minute of play, a ball into Williams box found the head of Messiah's Patrick Lee, who headed the rock across goal. Falcone attacker Sam Phillips, a step faster than his marker, got his foot to the header, but it went just wide to the left of
Ben Diffley's goal.
The Ephs were so close so many times even in the 96th minute when Felipe Gutierrez hit a pass into the danger zone. What ensued was a barrage of Williams shots from Sam Gibson, Atticus Ross, and senior David Wang, one coming after another from second balls. The Falcons defense did well and blocked each one, keeping them in the match.
The first period of overtime ended 0-0, with each side exerting maximum end-to-end effort, trying to be the first to score. For the Ephs, that effort would pay off only a minute into the second portion of extra time when Lorcan Mitchell and Kellan Grace combined defensively to dispossess a Messiah midfielder. Grace collected the ball and drove forward, but instead of running into traffic, he slowed his run down, took a few touches, and looked up. What he saw was a field stretching run into the right channel from Henry Kirkman. Time slowed down for Grace, and instead of making the easy pass or dribbling the ball forward, he hit a perfectly weighted, over the top ball to the feet of Kirkman. Kirkman brought the pass down with a technical, silky, smooth touch, as if he knew exactly where the ball was going to land before it did. He even went up into the air, and pushed the ball forward into the box, creating an inch of space between the running defender and the goal. Recognizing the moment, Kirkman lined up his shot and tucked the ball under the dive of keeper Adam Carter into side netting to send the Ephs to the sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
The Williams fans, 300+ in number, had shifted over as a pack to William's attacking half before the start of the second overtime period. When Kirkman scored the game-winning, walk-off goal, he fell to the ground at the corner flag in celebration and was soon pilled on by fans and teammates alike. It was an incredible moment enjoyed by the entire Williams community, not just the players and coaching staff of Williams Men's Soccer.
Eph head coach Steffen Siebert shared his comments on the win: "Unbelievable game by both teams today. This was a joy to watch and today no-one deserved to lose. Couldn't be prouder of the team as they kept pushing to score the goal from the first minute and that we were rewarded for it in the second overtime with a great finish. If this was the last game on Cole Field for the seniors that will sure be one they will never forget!"
The Ephs will play in the sweet 16 of the NCAA national tournament on Saturday, November 23rd, against Washington and Lee University. The NCAA will announce the specific game time and location soon.
