First-Half Goals Propel No. 11/13 Garnet Past No. 5/4 Johns Hopkins 2-1
BALTIMORE – Nearly 10 months after Johns Hopkins eliminated the Swarthmore College men’s soccer team from the Centennial Conference playoffs, the Garnet finally got its revenge – and boy was it sweet.
In a battle of the top two teams in the Mid-Atlantic region, No. 11/13 Swarthmore (6-0, 1-0) used first-half goals from junior captain Micah Rose and junior Henry Ainley while also withstanding a furious second-half rally by Hopkins (5-1-1) to defeat the No. 5/4 Blue Jays 2-1 on Saturday afternoon from Homewood Field in Baltimore.
The Conference-opening victory for the Garnet marks the program's first win at Johns Hopkins since 1990 and puts Swarthmore in prime position to become the No. 1 ranked team in the Mid-Atlantic region for the first time in program history.
Rose's goal in the 26th minute gave the Garnet the early 1-0 lead.
Johns Hopkins, the preseason pick to win the Centennial Conference, found itself back on its heels for much of the first half, as the relentless Garnet attack created problems for the Blue Jays from the opening whistle. Swarthmore – clearly primed for the important contest – outshot the Blue Jays 14-5 for the half and scored two goals late in the frame that proved to be the difference.
Swarthmore’s first goal came in the 26th minute off the powerful foot of Rose, and was set up by senior Morgan Langley – Swarthmore’s newly-crowned career assists leader. From inside the box, Langley passed back to Rose, who fired a shot from the right wing to the upper left corner to score his second goal of the season, giving Swat the early 1-0 lead. The assist was Langley’s sixth of the young season and 19th of his career.
Then in the 39th minute, Ainley scored what would turn out to be the game-winner. Set up by a wonderful centering pass from sophomore Kieran Reichert, Ainley one-timed the ball into the lower left corner, giving the Garnet an emphatic 2-0 lead that would last until the half.
Down 2-0 heading into the second half, homestanding Hopkins came out of the locker room playing with a new-found passion, firing five shots within the first 15 minutes to put the Garnet defense on alert. Then in the 65th minute, Hopkins finally got on the scoreboard thanks to a penalty kick. Swarthmore senior captain Gage Newman drew a yellow card on a challenge in the area, resulting in a penalty kick for Hopkins’ Scott Bukoski. He converted past a diving David D’Annunzio to cut the Swarthmore lead to 2-1.
From there, the game would become increasingly chippy – with both squads combining for seven yellow cards and 23 fouls in the second half – and Hopkins would continue to create scoring chances, but the Swarthmore defense and D’Annunzio would hold their ground, as the Garnet hung on for the 2-1 win.
D’Annunzio finished the day with four saves, while Hopkins’ Ravi Gill tied a career high with eight saves - seven of which came in the first half.
The win marks the second-consecutive season that the Garnet has knocked off a Top 5 opponent, as Swarthmore defeated then No. 2 Stevens 1-0 last September.
The victory is the 99th at Swarthmore for head coach Eric Wagner.
The Garnet return home to face Arcadia on Tuesday. Action is slated to begin at 7:00 p.m.
Video: Rose and Ainley give the Garnet the win: