Wake Forest University
9-2-0, 1-0-0
Boston College
0-1-0, 0-1-0
Deacs Win in Dramatic Fashion to Knock Off Boston College
3/6/2021 10:20:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Hosei Kijima’s late brace pushes Wake Forest past Boston College in the team’s ACC spring opener.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Wake Forest men's soccer (9-2-0, 1-0-0) won in dramatic come-from-behind fashion, riding two goals from Hosei Kijima in the final five minutes to beat Boston College (0-1-0, 0-1-0) 3-2 in a closely contested match at Spry Stadium on Saturday night.
The No. 6 ranked Deacs struck first with a ninth minute goal off the right foot of Jake Swallen. The midfielder took a strong first touch off a pass from Holland Rula to create space, and fired a shot outside the 18-yard box into the bottom left corner for the opening goal.
But an Eagle goal in the final five minutes before halftime, followed by another Boston College goal in the first five minutes of the second half, would put the Deacs down a goal much of the second half.
Kijima's 85th-minute equalizer, however, a screaming strike from outside the box off of a failed Eagle clearance on a corner kick, would tie the game 2-2. The Yokohama, Japan, native would follow with the 89th-minute winner, striking a one-timer from David Wrona on the right wing to slot a shot into the bottom right corner, past the out of position Christian Garner, for the winner.
The two late goals came after an offensive onslaught from Wake Forest. The Deacs outshot Boston College 13-7 for the game.
How It Happened
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Wake Forest's first chance came just two and a half minutes into the game, when Chase Oliver's cross found Nico Balcanzar's left foot in the box. Boston College keeper Christian Garner parried the shot over the bar for his first save.
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The Deacs struck first in the ninth minute, when Swallen's beautiful first touch created a pocket of space off a pass from Rula. Swallen swung one in from outside the 18-yard box, nailing the long distance shot past the outstretched arms of Boston College's goalkeeper. The goal was the sophomore's first of the 2020-21 campaign.
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Cole McNally saw his first bit of action in the 14th minute, snagging a shot from outside the box off the foot of Kristofer Konradasson safely into his hands. McNally would grab his second save in the 25th minute, blocking a close-range effort from Stefan Siguardarson.
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The Eagles would tie the match on a free kick in the 40th minute. Konradasson whipped a cross in from the right side, finding the head of Siguardarson, who struck into the top right corner for the goal.
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The teams went into halftime tied at 1-1.
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Boston College would pull ahead in the 48th minute. Konradasson rocketed the ball off his left foot into the right side of the net from just inside the 18-yard box to take a 2-1 lead.
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Kijima would get the equalizer in the 85th minute, taking a crack at a deflection off a corner kick from outside the box for a spectacular goal near-post.
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Kijima became the Deacs' hero in the 89th minute, taking a pass from Wrona and firing a low, piercing shot past the out-of-position Boston College goalkeeper for the winner.
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Kijima's brace were his first two goals as a Demon Deacon.
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This marked the first official contest for Boston College in 468 days, as the Eagles opted out of fall competition.
Demon Deacon Details Of Note
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Chase Oliver made his first-career start in the match. He became the seventh freshman on the roster to start a match this season.
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Nico Benalcazar made his 15th-straight appearance in the starting XI.
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Holland Rula appeared in his 50th career match for Wake Forest and made his 20th start.
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Swallen's goal was the second of his career, as he also netted one as a freshman against High Point on Oct. 8, 2019.
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The victory was head coach Bobby Muuss' 98th as head coach at Wake Forest.
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It was the 37th ACC victory for Muuss.
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The Demon Deacons have now won five-straight ACC regular season matches at home dating back to a 3-1 victory over then-No. 25 Louisville on Nov. 1, 2019.
Muuss' Musings
"I just told them that that was probably one of my best victories since I've been at Wake Forest, (and) maybe as a head coach. And the reason being is that we're up against it a little bit right now from a personnel perspective. I told them, not personnel in terms of talent, personnel perspective in terms of just numbers. ...And what's consistent here maybe wasn't the performance but the result."
Up Next
The Demon Deacons will conclude their trio of home matches to start the spring, hosting NC State at 6 p.m. next Saturday at Spry Stadium.
This will mark the third matchup of the season between the two North Carolina schools, as Wake Forest took a 4-1 victory in Winston-Salem on Oct. 3 and a 2-0 decision in Raleigh on Nov. 7.
Team Stats
Jake Swallen (1)
Assisted By: Holland Rula
GOAL by WFU Swallen, Jake Assist by Rula, Holland.
08:26
Stefan Sigurdarson (1)
Assisted By: Kristofer Konradsson
GOAL by BCO Sigurdarson, Stefan Assist by Konradsson, Kristofer.
39:43
Kristofer Konradsson (1)
GOAL by BCO Konradsson, Kristofer.
47:08
Hosei Kijima (2)
GOAL by WFU Kijima, Hosei.
84:59
Hosei Kijima (2)
Assisted By: David Wrona , Cristian Escribano
GOAL by WFU Kijima, Hosei Assist by Wrona, David and Escribano, Cristian.
88:40
