Gulls Defeat Firebirds, Pastujov Powers 4-3 SO Win
Apr 21, 2024By Morgan Korovec/SanDiegoGulls.com
The San Diego Gulls are flying in high spirits after bringing home a hard-fought 4-3 shootout victory over the Coachella Valley Firebirds Sunday afternoon at Acrisure Arena to finish the 2023-2024 season.
The win marks the Gulls’ first-ever win at Acrisure Arena. San Diego ends the season with a 26-25-10-1 record.
Determined to finish the season strong, the Gulls put their best foot forward as Andrew Agozzino jumped on the Firebirds to deliver his team-leading 25th goal of the campaign at 3:37 in the first.
Continuing his hot streak, Agozzino struck again at 7:39 to double San Diego’s lead. Having set the new Gulls single-season record in points Saturday night, Agozzino ends the season with 26-38=64 points.
The Gulls soared to a three-goal lead halfway into the first as Nikita Nesterenko buried his 16th of the season, earning his third point of the period. Nesterenko also picked up two assists.
The middle frame was an absolute battle in San Diego’s zone. Tomas Suchanek denied 28 shots through 40 minutes. While they put Suchanek under fire, the Firebirds were kept off the board.
The final frame saw Coachella pushing for their response. After being denied on his initial shot, Andrew Poturalski managed to put one in the net at 1:20 to set the pace for the period.
Less than two minutes later, Logan Morrison made things interesting, narrowing the gap to a single goal.
With a short-handed goal at 12:26, John Hayden knotted up the score, eventually forcing an overtime ending for the second night in a row.
Things escalated into a shootout, where Sasha Pastujov netted the game-winning goal to secure a hard-earned victory for San Diego.
Suchanek was stellar in-net for his final start, stopping 42-of-45 shots on the contest.
Judd Caulfield picked up a pair of assists and Drew Helleson recorded an assist.