NEWARK, Del. – Junior transfer Paulo Claudio (San Paulo, Brazil) made his growl heard with two goals and an assist in his Bears uniform debut but it was only good enough for a 3-3 tie as the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) battled back at the Wilmington Wildcat Invitational Tournament on Thursday afternoon at WU Athletics Complex.
 
The season opener draw left both teams at 0-0-1. Claudio gave the Bears a 1-0 lead in the ninth minute when his one touch just outside the 18 yard line found the back of the net off a ball down the middle from senior Marin Jonjic (Podstrana, Croatia). Senior, Hugues Douyon (Port-au-Prince, Haiti) delivered another ball down the middle late in the sixteenth minute that Claudio slipped past the Firebirds keeper for a 2-0 Bloomfield advantage.
 
UDC answered with their first goal of the season off a corner kick headed in by Mehdi Badache (Tunis, Tunisia) in the 20^th minute of the opening frame. The visitors on the neutral turf gained the equalizer early in the second half as Liam Haycock (Stafford, England) found the far post during the latter stages of the 51^st minute. The Firebirds assumed command of the match with a shot from six yards out that found its way passed junior goalkeeper, Wilson Cisneros (Bronx, N.Y.) for a 3-2 lead. Claudio switched roles and chipped a ball into the box that junior, Shaunavon DeSouza (Montego Bay, Jamaica) one-timed past the UDC keeper to draw the Bears even.
 
The two teams fought through two scoreless overtime periods with Bloomfield missing out on three opportunities to put the game in the win column. Cisneros stopped four shots on the day, while the Firebird's goalkeeper, Louis Connor (Birmingham, England) turned away nine shots on target.
 
The Bears outshot the Firebirds, 16-11 for the match, including 6-4 in the opening half, but where edged by UDC 8-7 in corner kicks.
 
The Bears return to Wildcat Invitational action Saturday, Sep. 5th at noon to face the Golden Rams from the West Chester University of Pennsylvania. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, from the Bloomfield College athletic department by liking the Bears on Facebook and following the Bears on Twitter or Instagram @GO_BCBears. Use the hashtag #BCBears to join the conversation.