On a unseasonably warm early November afternoon, the Alma College men's soccer team hosted Hope College Tuesday in a must-win contest in the race for the final MIAA playoff spot.

However, a goal in the final four minutes of the match gave Hope a 2-1 advantage and the win, ending the Scots' 2013 season. Alma finished with an overall mark of 9-8-1 and 5-8-1, three points behind Kalamazoo for the final spot in the four-team playoff structure. Hope concluded the regular season in second place with a league record of 11-3 and is 15-4-1 in 2013.

"Conventional wisdom would suggest that a coach be disappointed with a loss, and even more so, with a close loss that could have gone either way," said Alma Head Coach Josh Oakley. "I want to say I'm not disappointed at all today. My team left everything on the pitch tonight. We did things that were essential to winning. All year we have prepared to win, and that is exactly what our team has done.

"They are the first winning men's soccer team in 13 long years and we scored 40 goals in 18 games. I've been at this stage before in building programs and today made me feel good about where we are and how far we've come. I also feel splendid about where we are going. All 16 players that played in the match today return next season. We also have many other good players returning as we had just two seniors this year.

"I speak for the team when I say I'm happy, but in no way satisfied! This team accomplished much in a short time, but it's really just the beginning."

The afternoon got off to an ominous start for the Scots as Hope's Matthew VanZytveld hit the bottom right corner of the net for a 1-0 lead just 6:30 into the match.

However, Alma was a determined bunch this afternoon and did not hang their heads. Their perseverence paid off at 24:02 when So. F Zach Vandeveer (Elk Rapids/Elk Rapids) scored an unassisted goal for a 1-1 tie that both teams took to halftime.

The second half was a very entertaining 45 minutes played by two teams that were giving their all in an effort to pull out the victory. Alma Jr. GK Brett Galloway (Clinton Township/Chippewa Valley) turned away several Flying Dutchmen opportunities to keep the game deadlocked well into the frame.

On the other side of the pitch, the Scots consistently challenged Hope GK Will Morlock, who had come into the game at the 32:46 mark due to an injury. As good as Alma was offensively, Morlock had the answer to keep the visitors tied.

Then, as the game appeared headed to imminent overtime, the Flying Dutchmen took a 2-1 lead as Tarwo Konbloa scored off of a corner at 86:15. After the late goal, Hope was able to hold on and escaped with the hard-fought one-goal road victory. It was a devastating way for the Scots' season to come to an end, but the team could hold their heads high for an outstanding effort.

Galloway ended the match with eight saves on the afternoon, while Morlock notched five for the Flying Dutchmen. For the game, Hope had 18 total shots to Alma's 16 and had a 10-8 advantage in shots on goal. In addition, the Flying Dutchmen had nine corner kicks to the Scots' six.

So. M Matt Sovis (Williamston/Williamston) paced Alma with six total shots, including a team-high three shots on goal, while Vandeveer ended the afternoon with two shot on net out of his three total.

The nine total wins for Alma this season were the most since 2002, when the Scots went 9-9-1. In addition, 2013 marks the team's first winning season since 2000, when Alma finished the year with a mark of 11-6-2.