AZUSA, Calif. -- The NAIA's No. 10-ranked Azusa Pacific became just the fourth of 12 teams this season to take a set from No. 2-ranked Fresno Pacific, but the Sunbirds still handed the Cougars their second loss of the season in 4 games, 30-23, 30-20, 22-30, 30-17.

Fresno Pacific, the 5-time defending Golden State Athletic Conference regular season champion, jumped out to a 14-6 lead in the first game, and the Sunbirds maintained at least a 5-point cushion the remainder of the game for a 30-23 win. The Cougars kept it much tighter in the second game, battling back from a 12-8 deficit to within a point at 18-17, but Fresno Pacific got kills from 4 different players in a 12-3 run to close out Game 2 with a 30-20 win.

Azusa Pacific rallied in Game 3, jumping out to a 17-8 lead on sophomore Brittany Brown's second service ace of the match. The Cougars led by at least 5 points the rest of the way, and freshman Jill Baker tallied 7 of her 13 kills to lead Azusa Pacific to the 30-22 third-game win. In Game 4, Fresno Pacific used a 7-point run to turn an early 1-point lead into a 10-2 advantage, then used a 10-3 run later in the game to take a commanding 22-8 lead. The Sunbirds coasted in with a 30-17 win in Game 4 to seal the match and win their 12th straight to open the season. Fresno Pacific has a 43-match regular season winning streak, including 25 straight conference victories.

Senior Chelsea Morgan finished with a team-high 15 kills for Azusa Pacific, while Megan Burch put down 9 kills and did not commit an attack error until the fourth game, finishing with a team-high .333 hitting percentage.

With the defeat, the Cougars drop to 11-2 on the season, 4-1 in GSAC and become just the fourth team to win a game from Fresno Pacific, joining 3 other teams currently ranked in the top 13 of the NAIA rankings to avoid a sweep at the hands of the Sunbirds. Azusa Pacific continues conference play when it travels to Santa Clarita to take on The Master's Saturday evening.