Facing a very good Biola team on the road, Cougar men's soccer earned a roller coaster 3-2 victory on Friday.

The win pushes the Cougars back to .500 on the season, with their record now at 5-5-0.  It's the first blemish for Biola, who is now 7-1.

As they have throughout this season, the Cougar men came out with spirit and energy - and were able to translate that into an early lead.  At just the 12 minute mark, defender Jordan Shadeed started a counterattack with a long ball that found the foot of lightning-fast forward Brandon Zuniga.  Zuniga was left with a one-on-one opportunity with the keeper, and he buried it to put CSUSM up 1-0.

The Cougars would quickly add another.  In the 15th minute, Troy Skomra, who has made a name for himself with his dangerous throw-ins into the box, launched one that was so dangerous, the keeper actually deflected it into his own net.  A player can't score a goal cleanly on a throw-in, of course, but the keeper's touch made it legal, so Skomra earned the goal and put his team up 2-0.

But Biola didn't come into the game 7-0 for nothing.  They responded after halftime, cutting the lead in half in the 60th minute, and scoring the equalizer in the 83rd to send the game into overtime.

The Cougars would not relent, however, and Coach Ron Pulvers' squad would prove its resilience.  Halfway through the second overtime, Shadeed once again found Zuniga, this time on a long pass into the box.  Zuniga would finish again, sending the Cougars home with a well-earned and very important 3-2 win.

"Our training pays off in games like today," commented Pulvers.  "We are becoming more ready for this type of match."

Despite the exciting scoresheet, the game itself was choppy, with a combined 60 fouls being whistled. 

Next Saturday is homecoming for the Cougars, as they will take on UC Santa Cruz at Mangrum Field, starting at noon.