Men’s soccer advances in ACC tournament following comeback win

The frustrated groans filling Cagan Stadium on Wednesday night gradually morphed into excited cheers as No. 2 Stanford men’s soccer (13-2-2, 5-2-1 ACC) clawed their way to a thrilling 4-2 comeback victory against No. 15 Boston College (7-9-1, 1-6-1 ACC). 

Coming off of a 0-1 defeat to Cal in the final game of the regular season, the Cardinal headed into the first round ACC Tournament matchup with a renewed sense of determination.

“[Cal] was definitely a tough loss,” said senior captain midfielder Will Cleary. “But we did a good job moving forward. We just focused on coming out strong for this game and having that belief and trust in ourselves and our team.”

The Cardinal indeed started strong, with redshirt sophomore midfielder Trevor Islam’s header in the fourth minute caught by Boston College freshman goalkeeper Andrej Borak. Three minutes later, the Cardinal had another close opportunity when freshman midfielder Joshua Partal’s shot was pushed wide by Borak. 

Despite these robust chances, however, the Eagles took an early lead. In the 13th minute, Boston College redshirt junior midfielder Marci Killeen sent a through ball to sophomore forward Michael Asare, who slotted the ball in the corner of the net. 12 minutes later, Asare received a pass and drove down the left side of the field, with Cardinal senior defender Alfonso Tenconi-Gradillas hot on his heels. When Asare took a step back, Tenconi-Gradillas slipped, and Asare’s shot curled past Cardinal redshirt junior goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly into the far post. 

Down 0-2, the Cardinal faced their largest deficit of the season. Still, they remained positive, continually creating goal-scoring opportunities for themselves. They at last experienced a breakthrough in the 38th minute. The ball went flying in on a cross by redshirt senior forward Shane de Flores, deflected off of an Eagles defender, and landed in front of Cleary, who sent it near post between Borak’s legs. 

“I think it was huge that we got a goal before half,” head coach Jeremy Gunn said. “From then on we were always creating chances, always looking to score more goals.” 

And score they did. Just 48 seconds into the second half, freshman midfielder Jack Pymm equalized the game, marking his fourth goal of the season. With the momentum now on their side, the Cardinal ramped up the pressure against the Eagle defense. In the 54th minute, senior midfielder Fletcher Bank chipped the ball far post to Cleary, who headed it into the upper left corner.

“[Bank] put in a fantastic ball and I was just able to attack it and put it away,” said Cleary, who achieved his first career brace with that second goal. 

Now up 3-2, the Cardinal battled to maintain their newfound lead. BC’s senior defender CJ Williams tried to tie the game up with a header in the 60th minute, but Schnebly batted it away confidently. The already aggressive game became more physical, with the teams amassing 27 total fouls (16 in the second half alone), earning five yellow cards (three for the Eagles, two for the Cardinal) and starting countless arguments with the referee. Still, the score remained a tight 3-2 as the clock ticked away. 

It was not until the 89th minute that the Cardinal were able to breathe a little. Bank crossed the ball into the sixth yard box, and freshman forward Tomo Allen’s header found the back of the net, bringing the score to a secure 4-2.

“I thought Tomo came on and really affected the game in a positive way,” Gunn said of Allen, who ranked 98th in the TopDrawerSoccer Midseason Freshmen Top 100. “We want to have attackers who are frustrated, who are chomping at the bit for more playing time. That’s where we want them, and that’s where we can make changes that really influence a game.” 

Following Allen’s goal, the Cardinal closed out the game with a comfortable lead, ending in a 4-2 victory. Looking forward, they are shifting their focus to Sunday’s ACC Tournament quarterfinal match at home against the SMU Mustangs (8-4-4, 3-2-3 ACC), who they recently tied 0-0 on Oct. 26. 

“I think there are many things we could have done just a fraction better in the last game,” said Gunn. “Both teams probably look at that game thinking it’s unfinished business, so we’ll be excited to see them again.”

Men’s soccer will kick off against SMU at 5 p.m. at Cagan Stadium.

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