FRESNO, Calif. -- It took 20 minutes of sitting in a freezer, but the NAIA's 20-ranked Fresno Pacific eventually found its touch and down the stretch torched No. 22 Azusa Pacific with precision long-distance shooting to post a 72-67 victory.  The win moves Fresno Pacific back into a first-place tie with the Cougars in the Golden State Athletic Conference.
 
The Sunbirds, who missed a whopping 16 3-point shots in the first half (1-for-17), missed just 3 in the second half  (6-for-9).  Junior guard Jennifer Anderson led the Sunbirds out of its Siberia by burying 3 straight treys in the final 6 minutes, including the game clincher from the top of the key with 51 seconds left that put the Sunbirds up 67-62.  Anderson finished with 15 points, all off of 5 second-half 3 balls.
 
The game featured 10 lead changes and 8 ties and was tight throughout the entire 40 minutes. Fresno Pacific led by as much as 6 (56-50) with just over 7 minutes remaining in the game, but the Cougars would not wilt and behind Jacqueline Godoy's all-around play pulled even again at 56-56 with 5:22 left.  That's when Anderson nailed the first of 3 crucial treys.  And though Catherine Solorio, who finished with a game-high 21 points,  answered with a Cougar 3-pointer to knot the score again at 59, Azusa Pacific didn't have an answer for Anderson's other long-distance makes.
 
All-GSAC forward Teresa Kamps tallied 21 points and 10 rebounds for Fresno Pacific, while Sarah Montavon chipped in 12 points.
 
The Cougar frontline of Stephanie Patten and Ruth Taylor was plagued with foul trouble throughout the game, and the duo had to sit out over 11 minutes of the second half with 4 fouls.
 
Fresno Pacific built a 19-10 lead to open the game.  However, behind Patten's 12 first-half points, the Cougars went on a 16-3 run to rally back into the game to take a 26-22 lead with 6:18 left in the half.  Fresno Pacific, though, answered with an 11-2 run to end the half and assume a 33-28 lead at the intermission.  
 
With the victory, Fresno Pacific pushes its home court win streak to 12 straight and improves to 21-6 overall, 12-4 in the GSAC, a half game ahead of the Cougars.  Azusa Pacific falls to 17-7 overall, 11-4 in the GSAC.