Falcon Men’s Soccer Falls to #23 Cal State Fullerton in OT, 3-2

Team	1	2	3	Final F
Air Force	1	1	0	2
Cal St. Fullerton	2	0	1	3

Air Force

Cal St. Fullerton

FULLERTON, Calif. - Air Force dropped an overtime heartbreaker to the 23^rd-ranked Cal State Fullerton Titans, 3-2, Friday evening at Titan Field. The Falcons drop to 1-3 on the season will the Titans remain undefeated at 5-0.

Air Force put the Titans on their heels in the 17^th minute, as Air Force capitalized on a defensive miscue by the Titans. Sophomore forward Tristan Trager punched in his second goal of the season via sophomore teammate Lathan Spadafora's assist.

Air Force continued to put the pressure on Fullerton's defense. The Falcons were knocking on the Titans' door again in the 28^th minute as JT D'Emidio fired off a shot from inside Cal State's box, deflecting off the crossbar out to Spadfora who collected the deflection and sent another shot that was narrowly deflected by a Titan defender.

Moments later, on the opposite side of the field, a foul inside Air Force's box in the 34^th minute yielded a free kick opportunity to the Titans' Oscar Flores who punched it in top shelf to knot the game at one. Six minutes later, the Titan offense pushed deep into the Falcons' box where Flores struck again on a third-opportunity shot for the lead-taking goal.

Air Force, undeterred, continued to press the nationally-ranked Titans. After spending the majority of the staunch battle on the defensive side of the ball, the Falcons refused to go away as they continued to create opportunities for the equalizer.

In the 83^rd minute, a foul deep in the Titans' box gave the Falcons a burst of energy alongside a penalty kick opportunity. Trager, who leads the team in goals this season, lined up for the shot and beat the keeper lightning-fast ball, knotting the match at two apiece.

An intense struggle for the game-winning goal quickly ensued but neither team was able to notch a goal, sending both teams to overtime for the first time this season.

In the waning moments of a hard-fought overtime period, the Titans sealed the deal as Christian Pinzon capitalized on an opening for the game-winning goal.

Air Force took 13 shots on the game, seven were on goal. Spadafora led the team with four shots while Trager and D'Emidio tallied three apiece. Sophomore keeper Kainoa Likewise recorded two saves on the night.

"I could not be prouder of the way the team left it all out on the field trying to get a victory on the road," head coach Doug Hill said. "They battled hard and they are a very coachable team; we made some good tactical adjustments at halftime. It's very unfortunate to give up that first goal with a debatable call, but the men were resilient and found a way to get back into the game. We need to wash this loss off quickly and get ready for Sunday's game."

Next up, Air Force will face off against UC Riverside at 11 AM PT, closing out a five-match road stint, in Riverside, California. There will be no live stream for the match; however, live stats will be available for those wishing to follow the action.

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