Despite being drastically outshot, Sacramento State men’s soccer (4-9-3, 2-4-1 BWC) tied  a scoreless game with UC Davis (6-1-9, 4-1-2 BWC) on Saturday.

The game was held at Bonney Field, the site where the Sacramento Republic FC play. The match marked the first time the Hornets were able to have a night game at home.

UC Davis was able to create more scoring opportunities and outshot the Hornets, 26-10. UC Davis also had more corner kicks than the Hornets, holding a 7-2 advantage.

However, the Hornets were able to hold on to the draw due to brilliant play by their goalkeeper. Philip Bru collected 11 saves throughout the match and prevented UC Davis from capitalizing on any of their opportunities.

“We worked really hard,” Bru said. “We cut down mistakes in the back. We kept a clean sheet as a defense. That’s all you can ask for. We just got to work hard on getting the ball into the attacking third.”

Sac State Captain Mason McCann was key to the Hornet’s defense locking up UC Davis and keeping the back line organized.

“We knew coming into [this game] that it was going to be a battle,” McCann states. “UC Davis is a very physical and athletic Division I program. So we just came with the mindset of trying to match their work rate.”

Coach Michael Linenberger was proud of his players’ intensity and was pleased to have a night game at home.

“I thought it was nice to play here,” Linenberger said. “It’s a good environment for both teams. We would have liked to have a little bigger crowd. I think the weather maybe kept a few people away. But I think both sets of players really enjoyed the environment and atmosphere and playing at night in a stadium is a treat. We were hoping to give [the crowd] a good experience and I think they got a good experience.”

The increase in energy from both the players and crowd were quite noticeable because of the night game. 

Sac State hits the road Wednesday to play against Cal Poly at 7 p.m. Oct. 29. The Hornets only have three more games left in the regular season.