SEATTLE – The Seattle Pacific University men's soccer team hosted Point Loma in a non-conference match on Thursday night, as the Falcons scored a go-ahead goal with less than five minutes to play, but the Sea Lions found a late answer to end the match in a 3-3 draw.
With the score tied at two late, Alden Massey made a move just outside of the six-yard box before being tripped up by the Sea Lions. A penalty was called, sending Andrew Tran to take the kick. In the 86th minute, Tran punched the ball through the right side to give the Falcons a late lead.
In the 87th minute, PLNU's Milo Libby tracked down a ball he put into the net for the tie. Libby's second goal of the match parked the score at 3-3, as he helped his team escape with the draw.
"It's a tough one," head coach Kevin Sakuda said. "This game feels like a loss after giving up that late one. Credit to our guys after going down they fought back and continued to fight for things and create chances. We were pretty pleased with the performance."
Libby's first goal came in the 12th minute. The ball was loose in the SPU box as it went straight up and back down. Libby jumped up for the header, putting the Sea Lions up 1-0.
Orlando Erazo tied the match in the 43rd minute. The play started when Luis Zazueta poked the ball away from the Sea Lions. Tran collected the ball and then sent it forward to Zazueta. He crossed the ball to the center of the 18-yard box as Erazo turned and ripped a shot into the back of the net for the goal. It tied the match 1-1, and the score stayed until halftime.
PLNU's Samual Tuscano put his team up 2-1 in the 59th minute. Marlon Buck sent the ball forward to Parker Scalzo, who found Tuscano. He went with the one-timer that got into the lower left corner.
Erazo played a huge role in the Falcons second goal. Alex Brown passed the ball to Erazo just outside the top right corner of the 18-yard box. He sent the ball in toward the left post, where Ed Weise jumped up and redirected the pass into the goal to tie the game at 2-2. The goal was the first of the season for Weise.
"We've been talking to the guys about being a little more clinical in those key moments," Sakuda said. "On the first finish, Orlando brought the ball down, cleans it up, tucks it away. He played a great ball on that second goal. Overall, the performances have been good we've just lacked a little quality in that final third. Today, we were able to put some chances away which was nice."
The Falcons are back at Interbay Stadium on Saturday at 2 p.m. as they host CUI.
"We want to see that same spirit and fight that we showed tonight," Sakuda said. "We're not going to win a ton of games if we give up three goals. There are sports which we can do better in. We want to see the same spirit and bravery to play. The biggest thing now is being able to get our bodies right and turn things around. We'll move past this game and play a good Concordia team on Saturday."
