Columbia Secures 2-0 Victory Against Manhattan
RIVERDALE, N.Y. — Columbia didn’t just edge past Manhattan at Gaelic Park. It shut the door, locked it, and walked out with a second straight win and another clean sheet.
The Lions’ 2-0 victory on Saturday afternoon came alive after the break, with Ethan Heyward and Stepan Kapranov striking in a controlled, clinical second half that underlined Columbia’s dominance and extended a lopsided all-time series to 11-1-3 against the Jaspers. Manhattan slipped to 2-3-0; Columbia climbed to 2-1-1 and, for the first time since 2018, stitched together back-to-back road wins.
Heyward Breaks It Open
For 57 minutes, the game simmered. Manhattan carried the early edge, Columbia absorbed, and both sides waited for a mistake.
The breakthrough arrived in the 58th minute from a set piece that Manhattan will replay in its nightmares. Jack McDaid bent in a corner that found first-year defender Joshua Sosa lurking at the far post. Sosa’s header crashed off the woodwork, but the Jaspers never cleared their lines.
Heyward reacted first.
The forward pounced on the rebound and buried it, giving Columbia a 1-0 lead and his third goal of the season. That strike pulled him level with McDaid for the team lead and flipped the rhythm of the afternoon. From there, Columbia played like a side that knew exactly how to manage a lead on the road.
Kapranov Seals It in Style
Manhattan chased. Columbia countered with poise.
The second goal, in the 78th minute, was all about timing and touch. Luke Zielinski took control in the middle of the pitch and slipped a ball into Kapranov, who was posted up about 10 yards outside the box, shielding his defender.
What followed was the cleanest move of the match.
Kapranov flicked a clever one-touch pass into the path of Fadel Kone, then immediately spun into space. Kone returned the favor with a simple tap back on the give-and-go, and suddenly Kapranov was clear through on goal. One composed finish into the top-right corner later, Columbia had its two-goal cushion and the Jaspers were effectively done.
Taki Holds Firm Under Early Fire
Before Columbia took control, Manhattan had its window.
The Jaspers pressed in the first half and forced goalkeeper Aris Taki into meaningful work. He turned away back-to-back efforts from Cristiano Marsilii in the 29th and 33rd minutes, then denied Giovanni Rivera in the 36th to keep the game locked at 0-0 heading into halftime.
Those saves mattered. They gave Columbia the platform to grow into the match.
By the time the second half unfolded, the Lions had flipped the script. They outshot Manhattan 10-3 over the final 45 minutes, testing substitute goalkeeper Philip Isaksson through efforts from Oli Sacks, Jackson ten Oever, and the eventual scorers.
Taki finished with four saves, securing his second career victory and a second straight shutout in as many starts. The numbers tell the story: Manhattan’s early pressure faded; Columbia’s composure didn’t.
Road Trip on the Line
Two wins. Two clean sheets. Momentum, finally, on Columbia’s side.
The Lions now head to Philadelphia to close out a three-game road swing at Temple (0-4-2) on Tuesday, with kickoff at 4 p.m. at the Temple Sports Complex.
The question now is simple: with confidence rising and the defense locked in, how far can this road form carry them?
