(SAN DIEGO) PLNU Men's Soccer prevailed over Hawai'i Hilo, 2-1, on Saturday thanks to a pair of first-half penalty kicks.
Jack Merrill and
James Haynes found the back of the net from the penalty spot, which was enough to hold off the Vulcans in a rematch of last season's PacWest Tournament championship.
The Sea Lions started brightly and were rewarded in the 16th minute when
Ian Garcia was taken down in the box and the hosts were awarded a penalty after a PLNU challenge.
Merrill stepped up to do the honors and sent the goalkeeper the wrong way to score his third penalty kick goal of the season and tie for the team lead with four goals on the year.
Haynes then got to
Diego Valles' through ball and was tripped up in the penalty area by the Vulcans' goalkeeper, earning Point Loma's second penalty in the opening 28 minutes. Haynes then confidently converted the spot kick to double the Sea Lions' advantage.
Point Loma outshot Hawai'i Hilo in the first half, 12-3, and could have led by more than just 2-0 going into the halftime interval.
The Vulcans came out firing in the second half and got one back in the 57th minute, but the Sea Lions held strong the rest of the way to get back in the win column.
Kickoff was moved up to 10:30 a.m. because of an extreme heat warning in San Diego.
Point Loma (5-3-3 overall, 2-1 PacWest) now hits the road for three straight games, beginning on Thursday at Jessup.
