GRASS LAKE – An early season clash between two of the Cascades Conference’s best soccer teams turned into a thrilling affair Wednesday at Howard Stoker Field as a 78th-minute goal by Derek Sanders slipped under the crossbar to force a 1-1 tie between Grass Lake and Columbia Central.
Sanders scored the equalizer for the Golden Eagles with 2:02 minutes left in the game from just outside the penalty area.
“They controlled the field on our side of the field and we had to double down on defense,” Sanders said. “At the same time, we had to push it forward and get one last chance.”
“Just pretend it’s 0-0 and get back into the game. We had a lot more control of the game than we actually did throughout the first half and that’s what we needed to get back to.”
Grass Lake took the lead in the 54th minute with a goal from Ben Eros following a long free kick.
“It was the right place at the right time, but the finish was fantastic,” Warriors coach Andy Toteff said. “He was pretty calm and hit the ball well and made a great finish.”
Grass Lake had chances to make it 2-0, including when Nolan Allen hit the post with a shot just before Sanders broke through, but the Golden Eagles were able to hold on and get the final chance they needed.
“I think we were outplayed a lot in the first half,” Toteff said. “We just talked about their effort and I think they made that very clear. We didn’t play calmly and with possession and I think in the second half we really stepped up and played really, really well.”
Columbia Central had a better shot percentage than Grass Lake in the game (13-5), a total shot percentage of 19-9 and was ahead in corner kicks 6-1.
Most of Columbia Central’s attacking attempts were blocked by Warriors goalkeeper Tyler Paul.
“This is his first year as a starter. He’s been waiting behind all-district goalies for a couple of years,” Toteff said. “He played really well, not just tonight but before. There’s no doubt we could have been down several goals in the first half and Tyler Paul kept us in the game.”
Neither team managed to gain an advantage in the first half, but Columbia Central had the most chances and outscored Grass Lake 7-1 in shots on goal and 11-4 in shots on goal overall.
The Golden Eagles’ best chances came in the final minutes of the half. In the 34th minute, David Munro played a pass to Nolan Schiel but his header went wide. Moments later, Carter Simpson had a chance with a header at the far post but Paul saved. In the final seconds of the half, Paul blocked Derek Sanders’ shot.
This save led to a corner that Grass Lake was soon able to clear, giving the Warriors the most promising chance of the first half: Nolan Allen ran the length of the field and hit the post with his shot.
The Warriors had only a handful of chances in the first half. In the seventh minute, Columbia Central goalkeeper Allan Smith found a pass over the top for Allen. In the 29th minute, Sal Vitale missed.
Columbia Central appeared to have scored on a free kick in the 20th minute, but the goal was disallowed for offside.
In the Cascades, both teams are now 2-1-1, 0-0-1.
Grass Lake opened its season with non-league wins over Charlevoix and Tecumseh and a loss to Riverview.
The Golden Eagles won a tournament at Hart by recovering from an early loss to Glenn Lake to defeat Pentwater and Hart.
With the tie to open conference play, both teams trail Manchester, which opened Cascades Conference play with a 2-0 win over Michigan Center on Wednesday, and Leslie, which beat Jonesville 4-1.
