AZUSA, Calif. -- The NAIA's No. 12-ranked Azusa Pacific featured 4 players with double-digit kill totals, as the Cougars cruised to a 30-27, 30-22, 24-30, 30-13 victory over The Master's Saturday afternoon at the Felix Event Center.
Freshman Jill Baker led the way with a match-high 25 kills in 49 attempts, converting at a .408 clip, her 10th time over the 20-kill mark this season and the fifth time in the past 6 matches. She also added 11 digs for her 18th double-double of the season.
Senior Chelsea Morgan added 16 kills and 4 blocks, and sophomore Megan Burch added 16 kills and a season-high 17 digs for the Cougars. Junior Brianne Huff also went into double figures in both kills and digs, registering 13 kills and 13 digs.
For just the fifth time in 16 GSAC matches, Azusa Pacific won the opening game of the match, as Baker led the way with 10 kills without an error to get the Cougars a 1-0 advantage.
"This was a slow match for us," said Baker. "It took us a lot to keep our focus, and we really struggled to find energy right away."
The Cougars struggled at the outset of Game 2, conceding an 11-6 lead to the Mustangs before Morgan sparked a 4-point run with a kill to bring the Cougars within a point at 11-10. Azusa Pacific tied the game 3 times before taking the lead at 18-17 and eventually closing out Game 2 with a 12-3 run that ended with 5 straight Cougar kills.
With a 2-game lead, the Cougars looked eager to close out the match with a sweep, leading by as many as 6 points at 18-12. The Mustangs, however, had different ideas, making a game of it by scoring 5 straight points and blocking 8 Azusa Pacific attacks in the game. With the game tied at 23-23, The Master's scored 7 of the next 8 points, wrapping up the game with a pair of blocks and stay alive in the match.
"When we lose a game like that, it changes our mindset a little bit," said Baker. "We decided we just wanted to end it, and it gave us more of a sense of urgency. We still have some work to do as far as getting our minds focused."
With Azusa Pacific leading 6-4 early in Game 4, the Cougars reeled off a 10-2 run that included 3 Morgan kills to take a commanding 16-6 lead. Consecutive kills from Burch out of a 21-10 lead sparked a 9-3 run that was capped by 1 final Morgan kill out of the set of sophomore Allison Kincheloe.
In addition to her 59 assists, Kincheloe posted 16 digs, her 14th match in double digits for digs this season. The Master's was led by Amanda and Rachel Roleder, who combined for 31 kills and were the only Mustangs with more than 3 kills. Rachel Roleder, Jennifer Weinberger and Jill DeVries each finished with a match-high 6 blocks, as the Mustangs registered 15 blocks in the match.
With the win, Azusa Pacific improves to 18-7 overall, 10-6 in GSAC play, while The Master's drops to 7-19 overall, 4-12 in GSAC. The Cougars are back in action Oct. 31 to host Hope International at 7 p.m.
