BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. — Fresno Pacific closed out the Salem Invitational with a thrilling 13-12 win over Gannon on Sunday at The Bridge Aquatics Center. The Sunbirds scored four goals in both the second and third quarters, finished with 38 shots to Gannon's 34 and converted four power-play goals along with one penalty-shot goal.
Gannon opened the scoring at 4:27 of the first quarter, but the Sunbirds answered with four consecutive goals, including first-quarter scores from
Jake Canales,
Tristin Fox, and
Ryder Stermer. After Gannon responded at 7:10, the Sunbirds got back-to-back goals from Fox, but Gannon remained steadfast and scored three straight on the 'Birds. Stermer scored at 7:26 of the third, and after a Gannon goal, the Sunbirds put together three straight thanks to Fox, Canales, and
Yanti Quijada at 0:31 before Gannon closed the quarter with a goal in the final seconds. Gannon scored twice to start the fourth, but Canales converted a penalty shot at 6:16, and Quijada added a power-play goal at 2:22 to claim the 13-12 victory.
Fox scored six goals on 11 shots, added two steals and drew three exclusions. Stermer finished with two goals and three assists while adding a steal, a field block and an exclusion drawn. Canales scored three goals on four shots and added an assist and a field block.
Chase Hammes recorded a season-high 14 saves in goal.
Over the course of the tournament, the Sunbird of the Week recorded 20 goals overall, scoring 4+ goals in every match and a collective five steals. Fox also hit a season-high six goals against Gannon to close out the tournament. Freshman utility Stermer proved his mettle in the tournament, collecting two hat tricks and eight goals overall. Goalkeeper Hammes was diligent between the bars with 44 total saves and 11 steals.
Fresno Pacific is 2-7 overall after defeating fellow WWPA opponents, Salem and Gannon.
NEXT UP: The 'Birds travel down to SoCal for the Fullerton Mini to take on Cal State Fullerton on Friday, September 18 at 12pm. The Fullerton Mini will also include matches against Brown University at 4pm and Cal Lutheran on Saturday at 10am!
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