The Warriors clinched a share of the CCC regular-season title on Saturday thanks to Timur Zhividze's goal. (Photo Credit: Jeremy McDonald)
SALEM, Ore. – Timur Zhividze scored a free kick strike that he'll remember for the rest of his life late in regulation on Saturday night, lifting the No. 15-ranked Corban University men's soccer team to a 1-0 triumph over The Evergreen State College. The win gives Corban a share of the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Title with Rocky Mountain College, as both teams finish tied on winning percentage at the end of the regular season.
For Corban, it is its first regular-season CCC Championship since 2013, and sixth in program history. Corban head coach Aaron Lewis has now been a part of all six of the championships – four as a player and now two as a head coach.
"I am very happy for our seniors, some of whom were not able to play today due to injury," said Lewis. "They have all poured so much into our program, and I am honored to coach this group, and we will stay focused on enjoying each day we get to keep playing together."
Via the head-to-head tiebreakers, Rocky Mountain College receives the CCC's first automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament due to the Battlin' Bears win over Corban earlier in the season. ***Reminder that in CCC men's soccer, the standings are based on winning percentage, and not points.
CCC Standings
On the evening, Corban almost went in front twice early when Zhividze had a breakaway saved, and then Nic Farr blasted a shot off the crossbar, keeping Corban off the board. The Geoducks had a chance of their own not long after, but saw the golden chance missed wide to the left.
The breakthrough ultimately came after the Warriors were fouled right on top of the 18-yard box on the right side in the 78th minute of play, and Zhividze blasted a free kick rocket into the lower-left corner, sending the Warrior faithful into a raucous.
Evergreen, looking for the equalizer over the final 12 minutes tried to find the breakthrough, but the Warrior defense held strong, registering the key shutout in what will be a night many will remember for a long time. Jordan Farr finished with seven saves in the shutout for the Warriors. For the Geoducks, goalkeeper Ben Stevenson played well all evening long, making five saves in the loss.
The loss for Evergreen is its first of the season.
For the very evenly-played match, Evergreen (9-1-4, 8-1-4 CCC) held the slight edge in shots, 16-14, while Corban totaled eight corner kicks to just two for the Geoducks.
Corban (16-2, 11-2 CCC) will be the No. 2 seed in next week's CCC Tournament and will play the No. 7 seed, Northwest University. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. at the Willamalane Sports Complex in Springfield, Ore. on Friday, November 4. Full details on the CCC Tournament can be found here.