Junior Duce Bell scored his first two collegiate goals Tuesday in his hometown of Fresno.
BOX SCORE FRESNO, Calif. -- Junior
Duce Bell (Fresno CC) registered a brace in his first collegiate games before his hometown fans, but it wasn't enough as the Cal State Monterey Bay men's soccer team fell to a late goal at Fresno Pacific, 3-2, Tuesday evening at Ramirez Field.
"This was a tough loss on the road," said CSUMB
Head Coach Rob Cummings (@RobCummings3). "Even though we didn't play particularly well for much of the game, we still had a chance to walk away with a result against a very good FPU team.
We missed two breakaways and hit the post. These are games we have to learn to get results." Bell staked the Otters (1-2 overall) to an early lead, sneaking his first collegiate goal inside the left post in the 22nd minute. But Jorge Chedraui equalized for FPU (1-0) late in the first half.
The match remained tied until a 3-goal flurry in the final 20 minutes decided the affair. Freshman Dylan Rusconi notched his first collegiate goal to give the Sunbirds their first lead of the night just past the 70 minute mark. But less than nine minutes later, Bell drew the Otters even when he took a
George Plakorus (Columbia, Mo.) pass on the doorstep to complete his brace and move the match towards overtime.
Overtime wasn't to be however, as Eric Sanchez secured the spoils for the home side with five minute to play when he tapped home a Nick Watson corner.
Despite sustained pressure from the Otters for the balance of the match, CSUMB couldn't solve Sunbird goalkeeper Andrew Luis for a third time before the final whistle blew.
CSUMB continues the pre-CCAA portion of its schedule next week when it travels to Turlock for a nonconference match against CCAA foe Cal State Stanislaus on Sept. 16. The Otters return home to host regional foe Hawaii=Hilo at the Otter Sports Complex on Sept. 23.
GO OTTERS!
