Columbia Lions Secure 2–0 Victory Over Manhattan
RIVERDALE, N.Y. — Columbia needed a spark. It walked out of Gaelic Park on Saturday afternoon with something bigger: a statement.
Second-half goals from Ethan Heyward and Stepan Kapranov carried the Lions to a 2–0 win over Manhattan, sealing a second straight victory, a second straight clean sheet, and their first run of back-to-back road wins since 2018. The all-time series now reads 11-1-3 in Columbia’s favor. The grip remains firm.
Heyward breaks it open
For 57 minutes, it was a grind. Manhattan pressed early, bit into tackles, and forced Columbia to bend without breaking. When the breakthrough finally came, it came from a set piece and a first-year’s aerial presence.
In the 58th minute, Jack McDaid whipped in a corner that drifted to the far post. First-year defender Joshua Sosa rose and thundered a header off the woodwork. The ball spat back into the six-yard box, and Heyward reacted first, crashing onto the rebound to poke Columbia into a 1–0 lead.
No frills. Just a poacher’s finish and a swing in control.
For Heyward, it was goal No. 3 on the season, pulling him level with McDaid for the team lead. For Columbia, it was the release they’d been chasing since kickoff.
Kapranov seals it in style
Once in front, the Lions didn’t sit on the margin. They started to dictate. Passes sharpened, pressure mounted, and Manhattan’s back line began to fray.
The second goal, in the 78th minute, was everything the first wasn’t: intricate, slick, and ruthless.
Operating centrally, Luke Zielinski took charge in midfield and slid a ball into Kapranov, stationed about 10 yards outside the box, body between defender and ball. With a deft one-touch flick, Kapranov nudged it to Fadel Kone and spun into space. Kone immediately returned the favor on the give-and-go, springing Kapranov clean through.
One touch to steady. One strike into the top-right corner. 2–0, and the cushion Columbia’s control deserved.
Taki stands tall in the first half
The scoreline doesn’t tell the story of Columbia’s first 45 minutes. The Jaspers started on the front foot and forced goalkeeper Aris Taki to prove he was ready for the moment.
He was.
In the 29th and 33rd minutes, Taki denied Cristiano Marsilii on back-to-back efforts, reading the danger and holding firm. When Giovanni Rivera stepped up with a driven strike in the 36th minute, Taki again got behind it, preserving the deadlock and dragging Columbia into halftime level.
Those stops mattered. Without them, there’s no platform for Heyward and Kapranov to tilt the afternoon.
Taki finished with four saves, locking down his second career victory and his second straight shutout in as many starts. Two games, two wins, zero goals allowed. That’s how a keeper starts to own a jersey.
Lions finish strong, road trip on the line
Once Columbia settled, the balance of play flipped. The Lions outshot Manhattan 10–3 after the break, pinning the hosts back and forcing substitute goalkeeper Philip Isaksson, who entered at halftime, into work on efforts from Oli Sacks and Jackson ten Oever.
By the closing whistle, Columbia had turned a nervy first half into a controlled, professional road win. The defending tightened, the midfield took over, and the attack found just enough quality in the final third.
Now comes the next test.
Columbia wraps up its three-game road swing on Tuesday at Temple (0-4-2), with kickoff at 4 p.m. in Philadelphia. Two straight wins, two straight clean sheets, and momentum finally building — the question now is whether the Lions can carry this edge into one more hostile ground and turn a good week into a defining stretch.
