Box Score

Fresno Pacific fought back from a 12-9 deficit with two minutes left to force overtime and knock off visiting NCAA Division II Cal State San Bernardino 16-13 on Thursday.

Kelsie Harvey made 14 saves while Jaimie Lugo and Dani Mortimer each scored four goals in the win as FPU picked up its second win over the Coyotes in less than a week. Though the first meeting, a 15-13 FPU win in San Bernardino, had its fair share of drama, today's game in Fresno was even more of a thriller.

The Sunbirds fell behind 7-2 early on before scoring four unanswered goals to end the first half, three of them coming from Mortimer. The game was tied early in the fourth before three Coyote goals gave them a commanding 12-9 lead with 3:26 left. It wasn't until the 1:31 mark that Jennifer Cobb found the net to make the score 12-10 and give the Sunbirds some life.

With 56 seconds left Lugo would bring the Sunbirds within one and with only 13 seconds left in regulation Malory Rettig scored one of the most clutch goals of the season to tie the game and force overtime. With the momentum on their side, the Sunbirds controlled both overtime periods as Krista Loper scored twice and Rettig found the net again the give FPU a 15-12 lead at the end of the first overtime period.

Katlin Hicks added an insurance goal while Harvey and the defense kept the Coyotes at bay to seal the win.

"It was an awesome come from behind win. Our girls never gave up," said head coach Bryan Suhovy afterward. "They pulled together as a team and their momentum carried through for the win. That's hard to do, but they made it happen. We are very proud of how the girls played today and are excited for our final games next weekend."

The Sunbirds will close out the season by hosting the National Water Polo Invitational featuring FPU, Azusa Pacific, Cal Baptist, Concordia and Vanguard. The tournament will be held at Sunnyside High next Friday and Saturday. The Sunbirds face all four teams beginning with Azusa Pacific on Friday at 2:15 pm.