Dixie State saw its school-record defensive shutout streak end on a second half penalty kick, but the Storm did manage to come away with a 1-1 draw at California Baptist Thursday afternoon in Riverside, Calif. With the draw DSU remained unbeaten in Pacific West Conference play and picked up one point to stay in second place in the league standings at 6-0-3 (21 points), 8-1-3 overall.
The Storm got on the board late in the first half when sophomore Frankie Mallek (Yuma, Ariz./Kofa HS) picked off a Lancer clearing attempt and fired a shot over the CBU defense and into the net from the top of the 18-yard box to give DSU a 1-0 lead. For Mallek it was his second goal in as many matches and his fourth of the year, which tied him for the team lead.
Meanwhile the DSU defense, which entered the match down one key starter, stepped up and held the Lancers off the scoreboard for the first 76 minutes of play, though CBU did manage to take eight shots, including five on frame, over that span. However the Lancers (5-6-2/4-3-1 PacWest) would capitalize on a DSU miscue at the 76:04 mark of the match as the Storm was called for a foul on a challenge inside the penalty area, which result in a CBU penalty kick. James Bogdanovich stepped up and tucked home the PK attempt to pull the Lancers even at 1-1 to end the Storm's defensive shutout streak.
California Baptist kept up the pressure as the Lancers took 10 shots over the final 14 minutes of regulation and both overtime periods, but DSU goal keeper Bradley Trella (Chandler, Ariz./Chandler HS) made three big saves as the Storm defense held CBU off the board to preserve the draw and the one point in the standings.
"[California Baptist] was a tough team. They passed well and we absorbed their pressure throughout the first half and capitalized on a mistake," DSU Head Coach Josh Pittman said. "The second half started out well for us. We started moving the ball but we couldn't score that second goal.
"We made a mistake on a late challenge in the box that resulted in the penalty kick," Pittman added. "Brad [Trella] had another solid game and we were fortunate to get a point."
DSU finished with seven shots, two on goal, while Trella, who came into the match as the NCAA Division II leader in three defensive categories, stopped eight shots on the day. Dixie State's defensive shutout streak had reached seven-plus matches and 796:09 overall prior to the CBU goal. The last time the Storm was scored upon was at the 39:55 mark in the first half of a home match vs. Azusa Pacific Sept. 24, which also ended in a 1-1 draw.
Dixie State will close out its four-match California road swing this Saturday as the Storm travels to Irvine to face league newcomer Concordia at 1:30 p.m. (PT) Live stats for the match can be found at www.dixieathletic.com.
