FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific men's soccer team emerged with a victory in Thursday night's season opener, sinking Stanislaus State 3-2 in overtime.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Fresno Pacific 3, Stanislaus State 2
Records: Fresno Pacific (1-0-0), Stanislaus State (0-1-0)
Location:  Fresno, Calif. | Ramirez Field
Series: FPU leads 13-4-2
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HOW IT HAPPENED
• Stanislaus State found the back of the net twice in the first half, despite Fresno Pacific outshooting their guests 9-5.
• The Sunbirds switched gears after the intermission, scoring twice and holding the Warriors scoreless to force extra time.
• The Blue and Orange took advantage of a second chance effort in the overtime period to send Stanislaus State back to Turlock with their first loss of the season.

SCORING:
• (4:25) Bradlee Taylor found Joseph Mayorca, who took advantage of an open Sunbird net from 40 yards out.   
• (21:37) Sean Bender crossed to a sliding Sean Baird on the left side of the box, again exploiting a hole in the Sunbird back line.
• (58:57) Anthony Velarde scored FPU's first goal of the year after Aaron Peters' initial shot was deflected.
• (70:31) Velarde crossed to the head of Isaiah Asencio, who quickly dished over to Fellipe Souza. Souza did the rest, finding the net on an impressive sliding volley.
• (95:22) After a missed shot, Pak Hei Chan kicked the ball back to Loren Friesen. From 95 feet out, the sophomore midfielder fired toward the upper right portion of the goal, and the diving effort of Warrior keeper Patrick Colombana came up just short.

STATS OF THE GAME:
• Fresno Pacific took 24 shots on Thursday, including eight on frame. Seven of the Warriors' 11 shots were on target.
• Each team picked up five saves, though Stanislaus State split them between Colombana and starter Tomas Zajfert. Freshman keeper Patrick Timmer recorded all 95 minutes en route to picking up his first collegiate save.
 
BEYOND THE BOX:
• Despite the Sunbirds' convincing lead in the all-time series, Thursday marked the first time Fresno Pacific has defeated Stanislaus State since 2007.
• Since joining the PacWest Conference in 2012, FPU has opened with Stanislaus State on three occasions, going 1-1-1 in that span.
• Timmer became the first freshman goalkeeper to start a season opener for the Sunbirds since Davis Veith in 1988.
• Fresno Pacific started players from six different countries.

QUOTABLE
"Going down 2-0 was demoralizing, but coming back to win shows that we have that character. Coming away with a win keeps us pushing on to the next game. The goal was a fun moment, but it was total team effort that got us back in the game." - Loren Friesen

UP NEXT:
• The Sunbirds return to action on Saturday, when they head north to take on Cal State Monterey Bay. Opening whistle is set for 4:00 p.m. from Otter Sports Complex in Seaside.