Purple is a winning color for both the Hope College men's and women's soccer teams.
Donning special jerseys to support Van Andel Institute, Hope earned important Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association home wins in a doubleheader Saturday at Van Andel Soccer Stadium.
The Flying Dutchmen defeated Adrian College 2-1 to move into a fourth-place tie in the MIAA standings.
The Flying Dutch followed with a 3-2 win against Albion in the nightcap that kept Hope on the heels of MIAA leader Calvin.
Hope hosted Purple Games to help raise money for Van Andel Institute's medical research and science education efforts. Learn more about Van Andel Institute at purplecommunity.vai.org.
In the men's match, Hope (6-8-1 overall) used two first-half goals to pull even with Adrian in the MIAA standings. Both teams are 3-6-1 in league play. There are four regular-season matches left. Four teams advance to the MIAA Tournament.
Senior Toby Blom of Holland, Michigan (Holland Christian HS), opened the scoring for the Flying Dutchmen. He netted his second career goal and second goal in two games 8 minutes, 22 seconds into the match.
Just 2:27 later, senior David Porte of Mattawan, Michigan (Mattawan HS), delivered his team-leading fifth goal of the season to put the Flying Dutchmen up 2-0. Freshman Ryan Woodside of Bloomington, Illinois (Normal Community HS), had the assist.
It was enough for sophomore goalie Joseph Fifer of Caledonia, Michigan (Caledonia HS), who made two saves and allowed one goal.
The Flying Dutchmen return to action on Tuesday, Oct. 20 when they host Kalamazoo. Kickoff is 7 p.m. at Van Andel Soccer Stadium.
In the women's match, the Flying Dutch pushed their win streak to three games after jumping out to a 2-0 halftime lead.
Freshman Grace Bubin of Rockford, Michigan (Rockford HS), scored what proved to be the decisive goal in the 78th minute for a 3-1 lead. It was Bubin's second goal of the season.
Freshman Rachael Braginton of Grandville, Michigan (Grandville HS), and junior Elizabeth Perkins of Eaton Rapids, Michigan (Eaton Rapids HS), scored in a span of 3:08 to stake Hope to a 2-0 lead.
It was Perkins' fifth goal of the season and Braginton's 10th. Braginton became the ninth different Hope player to reach double-digit for goals in a single season off an assist from sophomore Erin Brophy of West Lafayette, Indiana (West Lafayette HS).
Brophy's nine assists tie for ninth-place all-time in Flying Dutch single-season school history. The school record of 13 belongs to Ellie Tresslar (2005).
Hope (13-2-1 overall, 10-1-1 MIAA), beat Albion by a 3-2 score for the second time this season.
The Flying Dutch return to action on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at Olivet. Kickoff is 4:30 p.m.
