ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Junior
Aram Ouligian scored the game-winning goal in the 88th minute to complete a comeback for the ages as Colgate rallied for a 3-2 win over No. 13 Michigan in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Sunday night. The Raiders advance to the Sweet 16 with the victory for the first time in program history and will face No. 4 Louisville on Sunday, Nov. 26 at 5 p.m.
Michigan took a 2-0 lead less than 10 minutes in, but Colgate goals from juniors
Ryan Bellavance and
Uyi Omorogbe helped the Raiders tie the score at 2-2 heading into halftime. Ouligian then headed in the game-winner with just over two minutes to play to lift Colgate to its seventh-straight win.
The Wolverines put Colgate in an early 1-0 hole as Jack Hallahan scored 1:14 into the game. Hallahan scored his second of the game in the ninth minute to run the Michigan lead to 2-0 less than 10 minutes into the contest.
The Raiders got on the board in the 17th minute when Stroud was set up with a corner kick. Ouligian headed Stroud's service towards goal where the ball deflected off the crossbar, but Bellavance collected the rebound and one-touched it into the back of the net to narrow the Michigan lead to 2-1.
Colgate continued to pressure the Wolverines before another corner kick led to the game-tying goal in the 40th minute. A chain of crisp passes within the 18-yard box led to sophomore
Christian Clarke sending the ball to a wide open
Abdel Sanogo at the left-side of the box. Sanogo sent in the cross, and Omorogbe fired the ball into the lower left-hand corner of the net to tie the score at 2-2 heading into halftime.
The Raiders kept the Wolverines on their heels for a majority of the second half with several quality chances. Ouligian played hero in the 87th minute when Stroud was set up with another corner kick. Ouligian sent Stroud's service into the left-side netting to seal the 3-2 come-from-behind win.
BOTTOM LINE
- Colgate 3, No. 13 Michigan 2
WON-LOST RECORDS
- The Raiders improve to 12-10-1 on the season with the victory.
- Michigan, the Big Ten regular-season champion, sees its season come to a close at 12-6-2.
KEY RAIDER INFO
- Colgate earns its second-ever NCAA Tournament win.
- The Raiders are the first Patriot League team to advance to the third round of the NCAA Tournament since Lehigh did so in 2006.
- Colgate has now won seven-straight games. The Raiders have come back from two 2-0 deficits during that seven-game win streak. Colgate erased a 2-0 deficit in the Patriot League Semifinals at Loyola to win 3-2 in overtime.
- Bellavance's goal was his first career goal.
- Omorogbe netted his fourth goal of the season.
- Ouligan scored his team-leading eighth goal of the season. He finished the game with three points thanks to a goal and an assist.
- Stroud assisted the game-winning goal to up his record-setting single-season assists total to 13.
- Clarke was also credited with an assist.
FACTS & FIGURES
- Michigan finished the game with an 11-8 shot advantage and 13-6 corner kick edge.
- Sophomore keeper Jacob Harris wasn't forced to make any saves in goal, but made several strong plays.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach
Erik Ronning
- "We knew Michigan was going to bring a lot of energy at the start and I thought if we could weather that then we would be fine. Giving up two goals in the first 10 minutes didn't exactly go according to script, but our team shows such resiliency and never gets fazed. They responded very well and we started finding ourselves back in the game."
- "I thought our guys performed incredibly well in the second half. We created some dangerous opportunities. It was a great finish and a wonderful day for Colgate soccer."
- "I couldn't be prouder of this group. They're incredibly outstanding young men who fight, battle and claw. The memories they're making right now are memories that no one will ever be able to take away from them. They've set the standard incredibly high for future classes and individuals coming through this program."
- "When you get to this point in the NCAA Tournament, you're only going to play the very top teams in the country as we did tonight. We head to Louisville Sunday and we're excited for the challenge."
Junior
Aram Ouligian
- "This was a huge win for the program. To do this for our seniors and this team is just amazing. Words can't describe it. To win in that fashion is so exciting and it's amazing to be here."
- "Michigan came out with a lot of fire power at the beginning of the game. We responded and we came back and played how we know we could play to tie it up 2-2. We rattled them and I don't think they were ready for it."
UP NEXT
- The Raiders advance to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament and will travel to No. 4 Louisville. Kickoff from Louisville, Ky. is set for 5 p.m. Sunday.
- The winner advances to the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals.
