Returning from an ankle injury and with only a couple of practices under his belt, Aidan Pierias made an immediate impact in his first game of 2024.

The Pacific junior scored in the final seconds to lead the Boxers to a 2-1 victory over visiting Evergreen State Saturday night at Hanson Stadium.

"It feels really good to be back and scoring," Pierias said. "It's incredible. We've been working really hard. Everybody wants to win. This is a great one."

Tied 1-1 with only seven seconds remaining, senior Brodie Buchert fired a free kick from 30 yards out, which 6-foot-4 junior Garrett Heuett headed towards the goal. After the ball bounced off senior Aidan Heflin, Pierias was able to finish and Pacific celebrated its second win of the season.

"We've been working on our set pieces," Pierias said. "Garrett is so tall and he always wins them. I knew we'd get a chance. I just tried to position myself to be there to throw something at it. It was crazy."

Tied 0-0 at halftime, the Boxers took a 1-0 lead on a Noah Gosch penalty kick in the 70th minute. 

Evergreen State then scored the equalizer in the 85th minute to setup Pierias' heroics.

"I'm proud of the way we played all 90 minutes," Buchert said. "We didn't give up after we got scored on. Sometimes, all it takes is a little trust and a little belief.

"It's unbelievable. You don't see a lot of last second game-winners like that. It felt pretty incredible. It was a hard game. We've embraced grit a lot and I think that's the game that shows the grit we have as a team."

Pacific had 10 shots, including four on goal in the non-conference win against NAIA Evergeen State.

Goalkeeper Zach Aderinto recorded three saves.

Next: The Boxers host Santa Cruz on Wednesday, Sept. 11 back at Hanson Stadium. 

For the latest information on Pacific Athletics, make sure to check out GoBoxers.com. You can also find the Boxers on social media at @GoBoxers on Instagram and Twitter.

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