GRINNELL, Iowa – Grinnell College's men's soccer team used thrilling rallies not once, but twice as the Pioneers snapped a four-match losing streak while earning a 3-all tie with Cornell College Wednesday afternoon.
The Pioneers fell behind 2-0 by halftime at Springer Field, but a valiant second-half effort capped by a goal in the waning seconds of regulation forced overtime in a game that finished up as the skies were turning dark. That late score came after Grinnell had tied it at 2-all, only to see Cornell retake the lead at 3-2.
Grinnell improved to 4-7-1 with the tie and 0-3-1 in the Midwest Conference, while Cornell moved to 2-7-3 overall and 0-2-2 in the league.
The Pioneers dominated the first half, outshooting Cornell 12-7 and owning an 11-0 edge in corner kicks but still trailed 2-0 as the Rams scored in the 16th minute and right at the end of the half.
Grinnell went to work immediately in the second half, as
Ray Goedeker '22 scored his third goal of the season in the 48th minute on
Jasper Yang's '21 fourth assist of the year. The play began with yet another corner kick for the Pioneers, and Yang lofted it to Goedeker who headed it into the right corner of the net.
Just five minutes later, Yang got into the scoring act with his team-high seventh goal of the season on Goedeker's assist. On the play, Goedeker found Yang inside the box and Yang whipped a shot into the center of the net. The goal was the 23rd of Yang's career, moving him into 10th place on Grinnell's all-time chart. Additionally, it was Goedeker's fourth assist of the season, tying him with Yang for the team lead.
Cornell got a goal in the 79th minute and was attempting to make it stick, but Grinnell would have none of it. The Pioneers even pulled keeper
Jared Cloutier '20 from the net and to midfield. Then, with under 5 seconds left,
Zach Steinberg '20 booted a free kick from some distance away and the ball bounced around a bit before
Henry Cladouhos '22 corralled it in the box and sent it into the center of the net. It was the fourth goal of the season for Cladouhos.
Grinnell dominated the first overtime, holding a 3-0 edge in shots but couldn't score. There would be no scoring in the second extra period as the teams left with a tie.
Grinnell held a 28-18 edge in shots, with
Sam Naik '21 taking five,
Mikoto Kobayashi '20 and Goedeker four,
Kyle Buse '20 three and Yang,
Matias Bambi '23, Cladouhos and
Max Sorenson '22 two apiece.
Cloutier worked the entire game at keeper and recorded 10 saves. He now ranks seventh in careeer games played at keeper at Grinnell with 48.
Grinnell has a big test Saturday with a contest at Knox College in Galesburg, Ill. Kickoff is at 1:30 p.m.
