FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno Pacific men's soccer team came away from Saturday night's game against Chico State with a 2-2 draw, despite playing a man down for the final 27 minutes. Former Reedley High School teammates Anthony Velarde and Jose Vargas provided the offense for the Blue and Orange, while Clovis West's Logan Dinsdale made his first collegiate start between the pipes. 
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: FPU 2, Chico State 2  
Records: FPU (1-0-1), Chico State (2-1-1)
Location: Ramirez Field | Fresno, Calif. 
All-Time Series: Chico State leads 6-1-1
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QUOTABLE: 

• "It was a challenge for us tonight, and I've got to hand it to our guys. We have the offensive weapons, so we know it's only a matter of time for us to get into the rhythm of the game," head coach Jaime Ramirez said. "We have a ton of talent on this roster, but we can't keep putting ourselves in bad situations and keep earning points. We're happy with the point tonight, but I think three points was doable."   

 
HOW IT HAPPENED: 

• Chico State wasted no time getting the scoring started, finding the back of the net just 69 seconds into the game. 
• An FPU free kick helped pull the home squad even, but the Wildcats responded with their second lead of the night less than two minutes later. 
• The Sunbirds again produced an equalizer near the end of the first half, but defense prevailed for the duration of the night.   
• With seven minutes to play in regulation, senior Isaiah Asencio was red carded, forcing the Sunbirds to finish the game with only ten players. 

 
SCORING: 

• (1:09) Justin Bethke connected with Jeremiah Egujie from the top of the box, and Egujie provided Chico State with the early score. 
• (25:56) The Wildcats made a strong attempt to block Velarde's free kick, but the ball caromed off a Chico State defender and into the upper right corner to even the score. 
• (27:34) Eddie Zecena passed to Egujie on the left sideline, and Egujie won a one-on-one battle with the FPU keeper to give the Wildcats their second lead. 
• (41:29) Pak Hei Chan's shot was deflected, allowing Jesse Hoekstra to find Jose Vargas, who answered with a goal from ten yards out.

 
STATS: 

• The Sunbirds outshot their guests 15-10, including an 7-3 mark in shots on frame.  
• Damion Lewis tallied five saves in the net for the Wildcats, while FPU's lone save was of the team variety. 
• The Sunbirds took eight of the nine corner kicks for the night. 

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• Vargas has scored in each of FPU's two games so far, making him the first Sunbird with multiple scores this season. 
• Saturday's duel was the first tie in series history. 
• Jeremiah Agujie has picked up where he left off last season, scoring four goals in Chico State's first four games. 
• FPU's last home loss to a regional opponent came on October 5, 2016, when Sonoma State picked up a 2-1 victory. 

 
UP NEXT

• The Blue and Orange return to the pitch on Saturday, when they hit the road for a non-conference matchup with UC Santa Cruz. Opening whistle from UCSC Soccer Complex is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.