AZUSA, Calif. -- Freshman Theresa Broad scored with less than a minute to play in the opening half, then assisted 2 more in the final 4 minutes of the second half to help the NAIA's No. 2-ranked Azusa Pacific put an exclamation point on a 4-1 victory over No. 7-ranked Point Loma Nazarene Saturday afternoon.
Broad pulled down a loose ball near the Point Loma Nazarene goal, then fired a shot that hit the right post and bounced across the goal line into the opposite netting, giving the Cougars a 2-0 lead with 45 seconds to play in the first half.
Sophomore Sarah Yoro drew first blood in a scramble in front of the Sea Lions goal. Sophomore Karen Lawrence was stopped from point-blank range by Point Loma Nazarene goalkeeper Grace Lee, sophomore Bridget Brotherton sent the loose ball off the post, and Yoro knocked home the rebound in the 22nd minute to give the Cougars a 1-0 lead.
Point Loma Nazarene cut the lead in half in the 57th minute, when Amanda Rowand's corner kick curled through the area and into the goal to bring the Sea Lions to within 2-1. However, the Cougar defense clamped down, surrendering just 2 more shot opportunities the rest of the way, 1 of which nearly tied the game in the 82nd minute. Becky Torres sent a low shot from the top of the 18-yard box to Azusa Pacific goalkeeper Jill Colfer's right side, and Colfer made a diving save to preserve the Cougar lead.
While the Sea Lions would fail to generate any shots the rest of the way, senior Jolie Nitta effectively ended the contest after another scramble in front of the Point Loma Nazarene goal. This time, a Yoro shot that slid past the goalkeeper was saved momentarily by a retreating defender, and Broad took a crack on the rebound that was saved by Lee before Nitta put it into the goal to give the Cougars a 3-1 lead with just over 3 minutes remaining.
Sophomore Sara Odenthal added another goal when Broad drew Lee out of the goal and touched a pass across to Odenthal, who one-timed it into the empty net for a 4-1 lead in the 89th minute.
The Cougars generated 21 shots to Point Loma Nazarene's 7 in the game, with Broad and Yoro leading the way with 5 shots apiece.
With the win, Azusa Pacific moves into a first-place tie with Point Loma Nazarene at the top of the Golden State Athletic Conference standings at 5-1 in conference play. The Cougars improve to 11-1 overall, while the Sea Lions fall to 10-2 overall. With 4 games to play on the regular season conference slate, Azusa Pacific will not face another opponent ranked in the NAIA Top 25, while Point Loma Nazarene has yet to meet No. 9-ranked California Baptist, No. 12 Westmont and No. 25 Vanguard over its final 4 games.
