AZUSA, CALIF. –  Sophomore All-American Jenna Sagehorn had a team-high 12 kills and a match-high 25 kills as the NAIA's No. 16-ranked Azusa Pacific held off a pesky Christian Heritage, 24-30, 30-27, 30-28, 30-25, on senior night in Azusa.
 
Azusa Pacific has now won 6 of its past 7 and all but locked up a spot in the upcoming NAIA Region II playoffs, which begin next Tuesday night
 
Christian Heritage (11-17, 6-13), which had won 4 of its past 6 matches coming in, including a 3-game sweep of Biola 2 weeks ago, refused to roll over for the Cougars, taking the opening game.
 
However, Azusa Pacific stormed out of the gate in game 2 and took a 13-3 lead. Yet again, the Hawks were again relentless and fought all the way back with a 20-9 run to take a 23-22 lead. The Cougars tied it up at 24-24, then opened up a 27-24 margin and never looked back, deadlocking the match at one game apiece.
 
The Cougars appeared to begin to take control of the match in the third game, jumping out to an 11-4 advantage. Nevertheless, the resilient Hawks stood tall, cutting into the deficit and eventually taking a 27-26 lead.
 
Both teams grabbed the lead over the next few points until the Cougars took the lead for good 29-28, and freshman Maria Abaca aced the final point.
 
The Cougars used a balanced attack and a strong blocking game to keep the Hawks at bay. In all, the Cougars recorded 28 blocks, and 4 Cougars recorded at least 8 kills.
 
Freshman Adrienne Pepe had 10 kills and a match-high 9 blocks. Sophomore Christy Kimmel added 9 kills, 9 digs and 5 blocks, and sophomore Roxanna Mercer chipped in with 8 kills and 5 blocks.
 
In their final regular-season home matches, seniors Tishanna Pope and Bonnie Whipple recorded 3 and 2 kills respectively. Pope added 4 blocks and 4 digs.
 
With the win, the Cougars improve to 22-7, 13-6 GSAC. They will close out the season Thursday night in San Diego vs. No. 6-ranked Point Loma. Earlier this season, the Cougars defeated the Crusaders in 5 games in Azusa.