Box Score SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — For the fourth time this season and second consecutive game, the Dominican University of California men's soccer team played into overtime.

This time they felt better coming out of it

Following a 1-0 overtime loss at Humboldt State on Tuesday, the Penguins rallied from a 1-0 second-half deficit and settled for a 2-2 double overtime tie with BYU-Hawaii in a Pacific West Conference contest  on Friday.

“I'm really proud of the guys. Just being down 1-0 and grinding our way back and grinding through things. I guess we're just taking baby steps,” said Dominican Director of Soccer Jon Delano. “This is our first overtime game. Second back-to-back. What I'm going to take away from today the most is we were very dangerous attacking.”

The Penguins (2-12-1/1-7-1) had 13 shots on goal but also created other scoring opportunities against the Seasiders (8-6-2, 4-4-2) that were not measured in the box score.

“Our kids are tired. They battled,” said Delano. “I wish they could have gotten the result.  Lord knows they gave themselves opportunities to get the results. This is a really good step in the right direction for this group.”

The game's momentum swung with about 24 minutes to play in regulation time when Dominican freshman goalkeeper Erik Anderson, who had 10 saves in the game, made a remarkable waist-high save on a Zack Dupaix shot that appeared destined to give the Seasiders a 2-0 advantage.

Instead, the Penguins tied the game with 22:49 left. Following a nice run by freshman Nuri Bon-Acosta into the offensive third of the field, the ball wound up with classmate Fabian Valdez, Dominican's right back, who calmly and accurately played it from near the right sideline toward the far post. Sophomore Sam Vella sped in from the left and headed Valdez's long cross. Seasiders goalkeeper Josiah Holtz made the initial save but the ball popped back to Vella who tallied his third goal of the season.

The Seasiders, who recorded 27 shots in the game, threatened to retake the lead a minute later when a Mark Davis shot skirted toward the goal, but Valdez made a goal-saving play by sliding and knocking it ball away from the net.

Again the Penguins took advantage of a stellar defensive play and turned it into a positive. Bon-Acosta, with an assist from David Mendez, blasted a shot past Holtz for a 2-1 Dominican lead with under 18 minutes to go. It was Bon-Acosta's team-leading fourth goal.
However, that lead was shortlived as Davis scored his second goal of the game with 14 to play. Then, with 12 minutes to go, BYU-Hawaii thought it scored the go-ahead goal as Brett Waters headed a ball toward the Dominican goal. It struck the crossbar then hit the inside of the left post but Anderson caught it before it crossed the line.

Anderson kept the Penguins alive in the first overtime as well. In the final minute of the first 10-minute OT session, the Dominican GK grabbed a shot by Bent Jenson, the Seasiders' leading scorer, from point blank range in front of the Penguins goal.

In the first half, the Penguins' best scoring chance came with 18 minutes to go. Off a corner kick by Kolby Mitnick, Mendez headed the ball past Holtz but one of his teammates kept the ball from going into goal and it wound up on the head of Dominican's Evan Myers but his shot on goal was also knocked away by a Seasiders' defender.

The Penguins off are until Wednesday, October 2 when they return to Forest Meadows Field to play University of Hawai'i, Hilo in a PacWest contest starting at 3:00 p.m.