FRESNO, Calif. - With their berth in the inaugural PacWest playoffs already secure, the FPU Men's Soccer Team dropped their regular season finale against Biola University 2-1 Saturday night at Ramirez Field.

It was Senior Night, and the evening began honoring FPU's senior class:  Francisco Murdoch, Tomas Escobar, Kevin Closson, Stephan Morris, Kevin Gil, and Fabricio Pozas Saboya.  The elder statesmen of the team were joined on field with family and friends who travelled to Fresno for the occasion.  The senior class would also start the game for the Sunbirds.

As the first action kicked into gear, both teams traded blows early.  Bryan Lopez had three attempts on target in quick succession between the 13th and 15th minutes, all saved by Biola's goalie Gijs van Schouten.  In the 34th minute, however, the Eagles broke through thanks to a foul in the box.  FPU defender Joshua Espinoza was whistled for a challenge on the outer edge of the box and the referee pointed to the spot without hesitation.  Biola's Ethan Hardin stepped up and buried it, past a diving Elmer Carballo.  

The second half began evenly, with Biola's Justin Eisenmann taking an early shot that went wide.  Lopez had a notable attempt saved early in the half.  As the half progressed, both teams exchanged shots and corner kicks, but goalkeepers from both sides maintained their composure with several key saves.  The Sunbirds would tie it up in the 83rd minute thanks to nonother than PacWest leading scorer Lucas Ribeiro.  The Biola defense played a back pass and the right back, with Riberio closing down, misplayed the ball allowing the Brazilian to intercept.  One on one, he cut in toward the center, dribbled across the box, and fired a low strike into the corner out of the reach of the Eagles 'keeper.

With the Sunbirds needing to win the game in order to improve their playoff positioning, they changed tactics by swapping a defender for an attacker.  With a more attack-minded approach it left them vulnerable in the back, and in the 87th minute Biola's Brennan Furlan was able to slot a winner past Carballo in a 4-on-2 counter attack.  The final whistle would sound shortly after, and FPU's playoff position would be confirmed as the 4-seed.  

The Sunbirds will travel south to Irvine this week to prep for Point Loma in the PacWest semis on Thursday.  The 'Birds defeated the then sixth-ranked Sea Lions last week to solidify their postseason berth.  With the new NCAA Division II Tournament format, the winner of the PacWest Tournament receives an automatic berth in the West Regionals.  Kickoff from the OC Great Park is set for Thursday at a time to be determined and will be streaming on the PacWest Network.


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