The 16th-ranked Hope College men’s soccer team battled to a scoreless draw in the regular season finale at Trine University on Tuesday evening.
The second draw of the season during MIAA play pushed the Flying Dutchmen’s unbeaten streak to 14 games, and granted Hope a share of the regular-season title.
“I’m proud of our guys for securing the first regular-season championship in 14 years,” said head coach David Blahnik. “I’m really proud to coach this group of players. They are a special group of men on and off the field. It’s really fun to work with a team that wants to strive for greatness and be held to a higher standard.”
Hope and Trine, now the MIAA 2024 regular-season co-champions, will be the top seeds heading into the post-season tournament. The tiebreaker gives Trine the upper hand and the No. 1 seed, and Hope will snag the No. 2 seed and a bye into the semifinals.
This is the first regular-season championship for Hope since 2010.
Hope will host a semifinals matchup on Tuesday, Nov. 5, at Van Andel Soccer Stadium. Hope will host either third-seeded Calvin University or sixth-seeded Kalamazoo College.
“As expected, tonight was a tough game,” said Blahnik. “Our guys battled hard and defended extremely well, but we just needed a little bit more technical execution. We had a lot of good moments, moving the ball, and the opportunities were there.”
Senior goalkeeper Daniel Hesselbein (Barrington, Illinois / Barrington Community HS) recorded five saves for the Flying Dutchmen.
Trine threatened with a chance on net, but Hesselbein denied the attempt as he knocked the ball away to keep the score locked at zero.
Freshman Jackson Mindling (Grand Rapids, Michigan / Grand Rapids Christian) and sophomore Micah Wieland (Bristol, Indiana / Northridge) topped Hope in shots with two apiece.
Mindling’s top opportunity came with 17 minutes left in the second half, as the forward turned on a shot in the middle of the box that narrowly sailed over the cross bar.
Hope next will play on Tuesday, Nov. 5, at 6 p.m. against the winner of the Saturday, Nov. 2, quarterfinal vs. third-seeded Calvin University and sixth-seeded Kalamazoo College.
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