LOS ANGELES, Calif.- The Fresno Pacific Sunbirds split a pair of games Friday on day one of the Convergence Tournament in Southern California, winning 18-7 against the Caltech Beavers and falling to the CSUN Matadors 22-11.
GAME ONE
The Sunbirds kicked off the tournament Friday morning with their first game against the Caltech Beavers.
The game started with Caltech striking first, capitalizing on an early scoring opportunity. However, the 'Birds quickly responded, led by
Tatum Benson, who scored a penalty shot at 5:14. T. Benson continued her dominant first quarter scoring again, extending the lead.
Frances Benson joined the scoring action with a well-placed shot. As the quarter wound down, T. Benson struck again with just 57 seconds left, followed by
Bella Alcazar adding another goal at the 5-second mark. The Sunbirds finished the quarter strong with a commanding 5-1 lead.
The momentum carried over as
Maddie Murad and
Sierra Coyne scored back-to-back goals early in the second period. Caltech answered with a goal, but the 'Birds stayed in control, with Alcazar finding the back of the net. Just before halftime, T. Benson netted another goal with five seconds left, assisted by Alcazar. Caltech managed a buzzer-beater goal with one-second remaining, courtesy of Dickson, but Fresno Pacific still held a comfortable 9-3 lead.
The 'Birds came out firing, with Murad scoring her second goal early in the third period. T. Benson continued to dominate, scoring a pair, with assists from
Maggie Cook. Caltech managed a goal off a penalty shot with less than a minute in the quarter, but
Alli Hepner quickly responded for Fresno Pacific with 17 seconds left in the period. The Sunbirds extended their advantage to 15-4 heading into the final frame.
The Beavers showed some resilience in the fourth, scoring twice to bring her team closer. However, Alcazar and
Summer Fulton countered with goals of their own, maintaining the lead. Fulton added another goal via a penalty shot to cap off her performance. Despite a last-minute goal for the Beavers, the Sunbirds sealed their dominant 18-7 victory.
In the win, eight different Sunbirds added their name to the score sheet with T. Benson leading the way with six goals.
GAME TWO
Looking to build on their momentum from game one, the Sunbirds faced off against the CSUN Matadors in a night game for game two.
CSUN came out aggressively, opening the game with multiple goals, quickly building a lead with a penalty shot conversion, followed by a pair of goals.
Maggie Cook put the 'Birds on the board, but the Matadors responded with two more goals before the end of the period. At the end of the first, CSUN had established a 7-1 lead.
The 'Birds fought back in the second quarter with a scoring surge, as M. Cook started things off with her second goal of the day.
Tatum Benson added another, assisted by sister
Frances Benson. However, CSUN continued to convert on offensive opportunities, trading goals with the 'Birds. T. Benson and M. Cook each added another goal late in the period, with Benson beating the buzzer at 0:00 to bring the halftime score to 11-7 in favor of CSUN.
CSUN regained control in the third, scoring a pair of quick goals. T. Benson managed to net a penalty shot, but the Matador's offense remained relentless. They added three more goals in the quarter to stretch their lead to 16-8 entering the final period.
The 'Birds continued to battle, with
Maddie Murad scoring early at 7:17. However, the Matador's offense overwhelmed the Sunbirds, with a trio of goals. A late power-play goal from
Maggie Cook and a buzzer-beater by
Frances Benson weren't enough to mount a comeback, as CSUN finished with a commanding 22-11 win.
UP NEXT
The Sunbirds will be back in the pool tomorrow for day two of the Convergence with a pair of games against the University of La Verne Leopards at 11:30am at the Las Flores Aquatics Center and the University of Redlands Bulldogs at 3:15pm at the Axelrod Pool.
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