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A last-minute goal by Calvin University brought the season to a heartbreaking end for the Hope College women’s soccer team Saturday afternoon.
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\nCeCe McCarthy headed in the game-winning goal off a crossing pass from Mikaela Waroway with 45 seconds remaining in regulation to lift the Knights to a 2-1 victory over the Flying Dutch in the championship game of the MIAA tournament at Calvin’s Zuidema Field.
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\nHope ended its season with a record of 12-4-3. Calvin (14-4-0) won its fourth consecutive MIAA tournament championship and claimed the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.
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\nAfter a scoreless first half, the Knights drew first blood midway through the second half. Kiah Nichols blasted a left-footed shot from just outside the 18-yard box into the upper right-hand corner of the net to give Calvin a 1-0 lead.
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\nBut as the second half wore on, the Flying Dutch began to put pressure on the Knights. Hope had four corners in the game’s final 10 minutes, one of which produced the game-tying goal.
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\nSenior midfielder Grace Fowler<\/a> (Cumming, Georgia\/Pinecrest Academy) headed in a perfectly-placed corner kick by sophomore defender Adelyn Raad<\/a> (Jenison, Michigan\/Hudsonville) to tie the game at 1-1 with 3:31 remaining in regulation.
\nIt was Raad’s 13th assist, tying the school record for most assists in a season. Ellie Tresslar recorded 13 assists in 2005.
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\n“I’m proud of the group for recognizing that it was going to take a little extra, because we were down. I think it took every fiber of their bodies to act and bring the energy into our offense when we really needed it,” head coach Holly Van Noord<\/a> said after the game.
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\nThe Knights outshot Hope 16-9 for the game, while the Flying Dutch had seven corners to Calvin’s six.\u00a0<\/p>\n