Box score
Fresno, Calif. – The FPU women's soccer team hosted The Master's College this evening at Ramirez field in a Golden State Athletic Conference matchup. Although the Sunbirds took the lead two times during the match, the Mustangs fought back to equalize twice, eventually winning the hard fought contest 3-2 in the second overtime.
The Sunbirds started the game strong, creating a number of scoring chances in the first half and outshooting the Mustangs 13 to 9.
FPU finally capitalized in the 26th minute when forward Ida Rodriguez was able to pounce on a rebound created from a Sunbird shot that The Master's goalkeeper Maria Loza had mishandled. Rodriguez reacted first to the ball, and poked it through Loza's legs for the opening goal. The first half would end with FPU leading 1-0.
Not to be outdone, The Mustangs created their first goal in the 65th minute. Freshman Andie Reyes received a pass from teammate Sierra Goff, and positioned herself to score on a left footed shot just inside the eighteen yard box.
The Sunbirds retook the lead just a few moments later in the 66th minute when Rodriguez was involved once again. She stole the ball from a Mustang defender, and then quickly countered to convert the one-on-one against Loza to record her second goal of the game and give FPU the lead for the second time in the contest.
With time winding down, the Mustangs threw everything into a desperate attack, which eventually paid off with just eight ticks left to play in regulation. In the 82nd minute, The Master's Emily Bruton made a strong run with the ball down the right side of the field, cutting it in towards the goal, and slotting it just under the arms of Sunbird goalkeeper Justine Caldera to make it 2-2, and bring The Master's level once more.
With regulation ending tied at 2-2, the match would be decided by two ten minute golden goal (sudden death) overtime periods.
Once again The Master's Emily Bruton would be involved in the play that would decide the game. Bruton scored the game winning goal on a header in the 103rd minute to complete the 3-2 come-from-behind victory for the Mustangs. The Master's Sierra Goff was able to get free and serve a ball from the left side of the field into the Sunbird's penalty area, where Bruton met the ball to nod it in and win the game.
“Despite the loss, it was really encouraging to see that we were able to take the lead twice against a very strong Master's team, and get a tough opponent on their heels, chasing us, rather than the other way around,” explained FPU head coach Erik Farfan. “As far as our play…I thought we played great…in my opinion, well enough to win or tie. Unfortunately that wasn't the case tonight, but we still have hope, and can certainly build off this solid performance going into our next match, which will ultimately decide our season. It's exciting.”
With the loss, the Sunbirds drop to 7-6-2 overall (3-6 GSAC) but will look to rebound in their next contest when they travel to Fullerton and face Hope International University Saturday, November 1st. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00PM.
