CARY, N.C. — Zack Schilawski scored the winning goal in his return to his hometown, lifting Wake Forest to a 2-1 victory over Ohio State in the NCAA College Cup championship Sunday.
Schilawski snapped a 1-1 tie in the 77th minute to help his team win the first NCAA men’s soccer title in school history. The second-seeded Demon Deacons (22-2-2), who had been 0-2-1 when trailing at halftime this season, rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit.
Schilawski, who assisted on a goal by Marcus Tracy in Wake Forest’s 2-0 victory over Virginia Tech in the semifinals, scored the winning goal against the Buckeyes.
Tracy powered his way through two defenders on the right flank, then juked past Doug Verhoff before crossing a pass to the middle of the field. Schilawski, a prep star at Cary High School, beat Ohio State goalkeeper Casey Latchem with a one-hop shot just inside the right post.
Fifth-seeded Ohio State (17-4-5), which was playing in the College Cup for the first time in school history, entered the game undefeated when scoring first this season and unbeaten when leading at halftime. But the Buckeyes couldn’t hold on after Roger Espinoza gave them a lead with a goal in the 13th minute.
Ohio State had its 15-game unbeaten streak snapped.
