Box Score Fresno Pacific picked up its first point of the season in the PacWest standings as the Sunbirds tied Hawaii Hilo 1-1 in overtime on Thursday night.
The Sunbirds (0-5-1, 0-1-1 PacWest) struck first in the 22nd minute when
Hannah Coyle was taken down in the box by a Vulcan defender.
Bianka Garcia converted the penalty kick to give FPU the 1-0 lead.
The Vulcans (3-1-2, 0-0-1 PacWest) would benefit from a Sunbird miscue in the 41st minute, as miscommunication in the back by the Sunbirds led to an own goal to tie the game.
FPU would have many chances in the second half and would out-shoot the Vulcans 27-16 on the night.
Jenna Thomason had six shots to lead the team with Garcia adding five. The Sunbirds had a golden chance to win it in the first overtime as Coyle put a great shot on goal that deflected to
Amber Rodriguez, whose shot bounced off the bottom of the crossbar and back into play. That led to another good look from
Alyssa Nakaguchi but the shot sailed high.
"Tonight we kind of switched up our tactical approach and felt like we were able to take control from the early minutes as a result," said head coach
Erik Farfan. "We did a good job of creating chances but we need to be more effective in scoring in the run of play. We're happy with our performance, as far as our ability to put them under pressure and create opportunities but we know that in order for us to achieve our goals this year, we have to put the ball in the back of the net and minimize our major mistakes."
The Sunbirds are back in action at home this Saturday, hosting Chaminade at 7:30 pm.
