In an exciting College Cup semifinal match, Marshall University stunned top-seeded Ohio State with a 1-0 victory. The decisive goal came early in the seventh minute when Marshall’s Tarik Pannholzer capitalized on a miscommunication between Ohio State goalkeeper Max Trejo and defender Siggi Magnusson. Pannholzer latched onto a long goal kick from his teammate Aleksa Janjic, who also recorded an assist in the play. With Trejo and Magnusson colliding at the edge of the penalty area, Pannholzer calmly walked the ball into the net. Despite a promising start from Ohio State, including a header from David Ajagbe that hit the crossbar, they were unable to recover from the early goal. Marshall, the 13th seed, will now face unseeded Vermont in the College Cup final.
Ohio State had to contend with several challenges during the match, including injuries to key players. Donovan Williams suffered a leg injury early in the game, and Takahiro Fujita of Marshall was also stretchered off in the second half. Additionally, Ohio State’s Nathan Demian was unable to play due to being hospitalized after being struck by a bullet in an off-campus shooting earlier in the week. Despite these setbacks, Demian supported his team from the hospital as they tried to overcome Marshall’s strong defense.
In the other semifinal, Vermont faced Denver in a thrilling penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw through extra time. Max Murray scored the decisive penalty, sending Vermont to their first-ever College Cup final. The Catamounts had previously defeated No. 2 Pittsburgh and are making a historic run in the tournament. Denver had taken the lead with a long-range goal from Sam Bassett, but Vermont’s Yaniv Bazini equalized late in the game. The shootout ended with Vermont securing a 4-3 win, thanks to goalkeeper Niklas Herceg’s crucial save and Murray’s decisive penalty.
