AZUSA, Calif. -- On the day the Golden State Athletic Conference first-round playoffs started, the top-seeded Cougars opted to take advantage of pre-NAIA Tourney preparation with a downing of Cal Baptist, 62-40.
 
Junior forward Stephanie Patten, led the way for the Cougars with 13 points and 7 rebounds in 26 minutes of action.
 
The Cougars dominated play for extended periods of time. Starting the game off, they jumped to an early lead of 5-0 lead before the Lancer's Katie Sico put Cal Baptist on the scoreboard at the 15:47 mark. For final 6 minutes of the half, Azusa Pacific allowed the Lancers only two field goals and led 32-15 going into halftime.
 
"We played sloppy, we didnât play our best game, but I didn't think it was because of lack of effort and lack of heart," said Cougar head coach Danielle Jorgenson.
 
"That is all I can ask of them at this point. I know it is difficult for us to keep our motivation high, but I think we did a good job of that tonight."
 
Junior guard Catherine Solorio and sophomore guard Marcene Guerrero also reached double figures in scoring. Solorio ended the night with 12 points, 4 assists, and 3 rebounds. Guerrero once again led the Cougar attack in the first half, scoring the game's first basket. She finished the game with 10 points and 4 rebounds.
 
The Cougars rounded out the second-half under the play of GSAC Player of the Year Jacqueline Godoy, who finished the game with 11 assists, 6 points, 6 rebounds and 5 steals.
 
The victory is Azusa Pacific's sixth straight over the Lancers and their 19^th in the past 22 meetings.
 
Cal Baptist was paced by Sico's 12 points. The Lancers got no closer than 19 points early in the second half and trailed by as much as 32 (51-19 with 11:41 left in the game).
 
With the victory, Azusa Pacific improves to 22-6 overall and advances to the GSAC Tourney semi-finals, where the Cougars are set to take on Point Loma Saturday (March 3) at 3 p.m.Ê Cal Baptist closes out its season with an overall record of 13-20.