Fresno Pacific unleashed 47 shots, including 22 shots on goal, dominating possession against UC Santa Cruz but struggling to find the back of the net for the majority of the match. After nearly an entire match's worth of near misses, the Sunbirds (2-1) finally broke through in the 86th minute when Bianka Garcia fired a shot from the top of the box that was bobbled by the UCSC goalkeeper, giving Amber Rodriguez just enough time to flick the ball into the goal on the 45th shot attempt of the day.

The 47 shots were the most by FPU since 2002, when the second-year program took a school record 64 shots in a 15-0 win over Menlo.

"I've only seen a handful of games like this in my coaching career," said head coach Rob Podeyn. "Everything we did was solid: the build up, the defending, the possession. I can't overstate how strong we played defensively, not even allowing a single shot attempt. We've worked on taking more shots and creating more chances. It comes down to game experience. Finishing is an instinct. We have some talented, dangerous attackers that we're hoping can develop that instinct as we go. We're ahead of schedule for where I was hoping to be at this point. The challenge is remaining consistent in our play, continuing to create chances and working toward putting them away as we begin a tougher portion of our schedule."

Rodriguez had a team-high eight shots on the day, one of 14 Sunbirds to record a shot. The team had numerous chances, including six shots from Mariah Montoya and five from Hannah Coyle.

The Banana Slugs (1-4-2) got great play in goal from Selina Davila Oliver (7 saves) and Athena Del Rosario (12 saves) but otherwise were vastly overmatched throughout the day.

The FPU defense and midfield did an exceptional job of dominating possession and not allowing the Banana Slugs to gain any momentum. FPU goalkeeper Selena Braun recorded the shutout in goal without having to defend a shot.

The Sunbirds travel to the coast next week as they finish up non-conference play by taking on Cal State Monterey Bay on Wednesday at 4 pm.