FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific men's soccer team continued to stay hot on Thursday night, defeating Cal State Dominguez Hills 5-1 at Ramirez Field. Senior Anthony Velarde was once again right in the middle of the Sunbirds' success, picking up two goals and an assist from the midfield. 
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: Fresno Pacific 5, Cal State Dominguez Hills 1    
Records: FPU (8-1-1), CSUDH (4-9-0)
All-Time Series: FPU leads 4-3-0
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• 24 seconds into the game, Velarde lined up for FPU's first penalty kick of the season, but his shot hit the crossbar to keep the 'Birds from drawing first blood.
• The Sunbirds came away with another opportunity 37 seconds later, but an offside flag waved off the score.
• The Toros ultimately got on the scoreboard first, striking in the game's sixth minute for an early lead, Fresno Pacific answered with two scores before the first half ended and never looked back.
• The Blue and Orange got two quick goals to begin the second half, taking a 4-1 lead before giving many of the starters the rest of the night off ahead of Saturday's league match.
• A fifth score helped the Sunbirds put the rest of the game on cruise control with 23 minutes left to play.
 
SCORING: 
• (5:54) George Almeida's shot was blocked, but Braeden Anderson collected the rebound and hit the lower left corner for his first score of the year. 
• (24:04) Cesar Angulo lofted a long ball over the top to Jose Vargas, who took a quick dribble into the box before crossing to Velarde for the equalizer.
• (41:41) Joao Ravasio dribbled near the top of the box before dumping off to Anthony Torres. Torres' shot trickled into the back of the net, giving the Sunbirds all the security they would need to pull out the win. 
• (49:16) Torres handed out an assist of his own, playing the ball over the top to set up Sergio Bermudez, who beat the CSUDH keeper in a one-on-one.
• (54:44) Velarde connected with Ravasio, who fired from just outside the box for his third score of the year.
• (67:18) After Velarde's free kick was blocked by the Toro defensive wall, the ball bounced right back to him for the final goal of the night. 
 
STATS FROM THE GAME:
• Fresno Pacific outshot their hosts 22-11, including a 13-4 mark in shots on frame.    
• Patrick Timmer and Logan Dinsdale combined to give the Sunbirds three saves for the night, while Julian Tafolla-Cisnersos racked up eight for the Toros.  
• The Sunbirds took four of the game's seven corner kicks.
 
BEYOND THE BOX:
• Velarde has recorded at least one point in all but game this season, and he is now just two goals away from his second season with ten goals and ten assists.  
• The Sunbirds are now on their longest win streak since the 2015 season, when they ended the regular season with seven straight victories and their second consecutive PacWest Conference Championship.
 
SOCIAL:
• Twitter - @fpusunbirds | Instagram - @fpusunbirds | Facebook - /FPUathletics  
 
UP NEXT:
• The Sunbirds are back in action on Saturday, when they host Notre Dame de Namur in PacWest Conference action. Opening whistle from Ramirez Field is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.