Chandler Hamilton was backed into an unfamiliar late-season corner.

As for Chandler’s boys soccer program, it felt right at home, battling for one of the final postseason seeds. In recent years, Chandler’s late-season heroics allowed it to either pull off postseason upsets or snatch one of the last playoff berths.

On Thursday, Chandler was at it again, grabbing a 2-0 lead that gratified the home fans because the opponent was Chandler’s in-city rival, Hamilton. With a No. 15 aia365.com ranking with two regular season games remaining and trailing Chandler Thursday, Hamilton, the defending Division I state champ and state title participant the past three seasons, was in uncharted territory.

But making sure it remained in the top-16 isn’t what Hamilton zeroed in on. Converting the chances it created throughout Thursday’s game is what Hamilton targeted.

In the second half, Hamilton finally hit its mark with three goals to put away a Chandler team, 3-2, that gave a great effort during its two losses to Hamilton this week. Chandler is a dangerous team on restarts and scored its two goals on set plays.

Taylor Rumsey’s header off a throw in gave Chandler a 1-0 lead in the 8^th minute, and a free kick by Chandler’s Blake Evans from near midfield somehow found the back of Hamilton’s net in the 31^st minute for another goal. But Hamilton also used a couple of throw ins on Chandler’s narrow field and a breakaway to score its three second half goals.

Hamilton scored its first goal five minutes into the second half, when four-year varsity player Nolan Barth’s through pass set up Luis Manta with a one-on-one against Chandler’s goalkeeper. Manta sent the ball to the far side netting to avoid the goalkeeper.

With nine minutes remaining in the match, Manta scored again after a great save by Chandler goalkeeper Brad Trella. Manta’s strike caromed off the crossbar first before going in.

Then, with 2:08 remaining in the match, Ryan Banyai scored the game-winner with his head after receiving a throw in.

“It’s a rivalry,” Hamilton coach Nick Markette said. “We live on the same street. So we knew this was one of those games we had to go take.

“My hat’s off to them (Chandler). They jumped on us 2-0. They stuck with their game plan. (Second-year Chandler) coach (Sasha Hunter) is doing fantastic job with them. But ultimately I felt like we just had to go take it and play from the corazon (heart).”