Team CelebrationWill Reilly
Jim Shorin/ISI Photos
Men's Soccer

Miracle From Midfield

Dylan Hooper scores a miraculous goal from beyond the midfield stripe to lift Stanford to opening round 3-2 win over Notre Dame

Box Score

STANFORD, Calif. - Dylan Hooper delivered the goal of the year in one of the most miraculous finishes in recent memory for Stanford, scoring from beyond the midfield line with one second remaining to lift the Cardinal to a buzzer-beating 3-2 victory over Notre Dame on Wednesday evening. 

Hooper's first goal of the season pushed Stanford (9-4-4) to the second round of the ACC Tournament, advancing to play No. 2 seed Clemson on the road on Sunday. 

"It was a crazy game of soccer," Knowles Family Director of Men's Soccer Jeremy Gunn said. "I've seen a lot and have been in a lot of games, but I don't think I have ever seen anything like that at the end of the game."

After an uneventful opening 20 minutes to the contest, Notre Dame got on the scoreboard first, after a Cardinal handball inside the box led to an Irish attacker burying the penalty chance in the lower left corner to go up a goal.

"To have a penalty called against us when it was one of those ball-to-hand situations, it's just really unlucky," Gunn added. "We haven't done anything bad on the play, the ball just hit Dylan [Groeneveld] in the hands."

Stanford would quickly respond in the 34th minute, with Jackson Kiil sneaking a header just under the crossbar from a beautiful Will Cleary delivery to make the score 1-1 heading into the half.

The Cardinal poured the pressure on out of the halftime break with multiple scoring looks and its effort was rewarded with a penalty kick off Stanford's own from a handball in the 85th minute, where Will Reilly converted to take a late 2-1 lead. 

As time was winding down in regulation, goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly was issued a yellow card for time wasting, setting up an indirect free kick opportunity that Notre Dame would capitalize on to level the score at 2-2. 

I thought we played fantastic in the second half but it was tough to break down a stubborn defense," said Gunn "Will [Reilly] showed nerves on steel to bury the penalty and we think it's job done. Then to have one of those calls that doesn't normally get called and give up a goal with seconds left was just crazy"

With the game all but certain to head to overtime, Hooper would launch a last-ditch attack towards the net that would remarkably clear the outstretched gloves of the Fighting Irish goalkeeper and find the back of the net with just one second left on the clock. 

When asked where the finish ranked among the soccer finishes he's been a part of, Hooper replied, "Probably number one."

"An ACC tournament game and scoring in the last couple seconds like that, it's probably the highlight of my career honestly." 

The final scoresheet saw Stanford hold the statistical edge in shots (18-7) and corner kicks (6-1). Kiil lead the way with six total attacks, including three on frame. Zach Bohane registered three shots of his own, followed by Shane De Flores and Will Reilly with two.

The Cardinal will now turn it's attention to Clemson, an opponent they know all too well as the Tigers eliminated Stanford in the NCAA Quarterfinals last season. The two programs also met in the regular season, with Stanford coming away with a 3-2 victory on the road. 

Sunday's second round contest against Clemson will begin at 11 a.m. PT live on ACC Network.