SYRACUSE, N.Y. - No. 8 Stanford scored twice in the final ten minutes to erase a late deficit and earn a resilient 3-2 victory over Syracuse on Saturday evening.
The Cardinal (6-1-0) picks up its first conference win of the season in the first-ever meeting between the two sides, while Syracuse (2-3-2) still searches for its first home win of the season after surrendering a late lead.
“Tonight was just an exhilarating game of soccer,” said Jeremy Gunn, the Knowles Family Director of Men’s Soccer. “I think a lot of teams would fold after the circumstances we faced tonight, but it was remarkable to see how strong our players looked and how determined they were to get back into the game.”
The Orange opened the scoring in the 10th minute when Kristjan Fortier collected the rebound from his own blocked shot and fired a strike into the top-left corner of the box to give Syracuse the 1-0 advantage.
Stanford continued to push forward throughout the opening frame, but were unable to capitalize on a handful of promising early chances around the goal area.
In the 34th minute, the Cardinal were awarded a golden opportunity after a Tim Noeding handball in the box put Stanford on the penalty spot. Captain Zach Bohane stepped up to take the chance, burying a shot in the top corner to tie the match at 1-1.
Stanford appeared to take the lead just a minute later from on a Tomo Allen close-range finish, but his goal was waved off for offside and the match remained level heading into the break.
The intensity carried into the second half, with both sides continuing to trade blows with dangerous chances. Stanford thought it had pulled ahead again in the 67th minute on a set-piece header from Allen, but the freshman was again ruled a half step offside.
In the 71st minute, Fletcher Bank drew the keeper out of position and squared a pass to Shane De Flores, whose scoring chance was saved by an Orange defender at the goal line.
That allowed Syracuse the opportunity to pull ahead just moments later, as a flurry in front of the net created a loose ball opportunity at the back post for Chimere Omeze, who slotted it in across the face of the goal to give the Orange the lead in the 76th minute.
The Cardinal never wavered in its attack, answered back just minutes later as Fletcher Bank battled through a pair of Syracuse defenders and firing a low attack in the right side of the net for the equalizer.
After continuing to create offensive chances, Stanford completed the comeback in the 86th minute, with Trevor Islam playing the rebound off his blocked shot and converting on the second-chance opportunity for his second goal in as many games.
Syracuse scrambled to find a late goal but would not find the equalizer, as the Cardinal would hang on for the thrilling win.
“Tonight, we can be really proud of how our team came back,” Gunn added. “We overcame two deficits and really finished off the game in tremendous fashion.”
The final scoresheet saw Syracuse hold a slight 11-8 advantage on shots, although Stanford led the contest with five attacks on frame to the Orange’s two. The Cardinal also had a 10-4 lead on corner kicks in the match.
Stanford returns to the Bay Area on September 17 for a road contest against San Jose State, before turning its attention to its first home conference match of the season against Virginia Tech on September 21.