WOLVERINES OPEN 2017 WITH THRILLING COMEBACK WIN
RIVERVIEW, Mich. - For the first 70 minutes of the 2017 regular season opener, the University of Michigan-Dearborn men's soccer team was unable to get going on offense, while a pair of late first-half goals and another shortly after the break from Trinity Christian College, put the Wolverines down 3-0 Saturday at Gabriel Richard High School in Riverview, Mich.
The game flipped in UM-Dearborn's favor in the 70th minute when freshman Vito Serra (FR/Macomb, MI) broke towards goal and earned his team a penalty kick. Senior Ali Anani (SR/Dearborn Heights, MI) converted on the chance to cut the Trolls lead to 3-1.
One minute later, the Wolverines put even more pressure on TCC, when freshman Ali Khcheiche(FR/Dearborn Heights, MI) got on the end of a pass from fellow newcomer Chad Schmerheim (FR/St. Clair Shores, MI). Khcheiche took a sliding shot, putting it past the Troll goalkeeper to cut the deficit to 3-2.
The next 15 minutes saw both teams miss out on high-quality chances, including a TCC strike ringing off the crossbar. The Wolverines continued the attack and Schmerheim, once again found Khcheiche, who buried a header into the net to tie the score with his second goal in the 86th minute.
The game seemed destined for overtime when TCC found a breakaway chance that ended with a Wolverine foul and a Troll penalty kick with only five seconds left in regulation. Genenet Timmermans, who netted two goals earlier in the game for TCC, stepped up to the penalty spot with a chance to win the game. Timmermans' strike was heading for the right corner before a diving save from UM-Dearborn goalkeeper Dylon DaSilva (JR/Canton, MI) sent it flying out of bounds and pushing the game to overtime.
The contest continued to go back and forth, with both teams finding narrow misses in pursuit of the game-winner. After a scoreless 19 minutes of overtime, Khcheiche played the hero once more, finding a loose ball on the doorstep of the goal and putting it away for the game-winner with less than a minute remaining in the second overtime, sending the Wolverine team and the large crowd into a frenzy.
The Trolls outshot the Wolverines 27-14, while DaSilva (1-0) posted eight saves in the win.
The Wolverines hit the road for six straight games, but will first take on NCAA Division II opponent Northwood University in an exhibition at 4 p.m. Thursday in Midland, Mich.
