GOLDEN, Colo. -- Azusa Pacific's supply of fourth-quarter magic on the road ran out Saturday afternoon in Golden, Colo., as the No. 10-ranked Cougars were stopped on their final possession in the red zone by Colorado Mines, which edged the Cougars, 27-23, in non-conference action.

Azusa Pacific twice rallied from deficits to take the lead, answering a 13-0 first-quarter deficit with two first-half touchdowns before rallying again from a halftime deficit less than a minute into the third quarter. Colorado Mines scored the final go-ahead touchdown midway through the third quarter and limited the Cougars to just one fourth-quarter possession.

Midway through the fourth quarter, facing a 27-23 deficit, the Cougars moved from their own 20-yard line inside the Colorado Mines 20, with the biggest chunk of yardage coming on a 45-yard pass from Chad Jeffries to Weston Carr. However, a third-down false start penalty was followed by a four-yard sack, setting up a fourth-and-15 pass which was intercepted at the seven-yard line.

The Orediggers took over with 5:16 left in the game and successfully drained the clock by converting a pair of third-and-short opportunities. In all, Colorado Mines piled up 30 first downs and kept the chains and clock moving by converting 16-of-22 third-down conversion tries, controlling possession for all but 4:12 of the final quarter.

Following two Colorado Mines touchdowns which put the Cougars into an early 13-0 hole, Tyree Davis returned a kickoff from his own end zone for a 100-yard kick return touchdown to cut the margin to 13-7. Junior quarterback Andrew Elffers connected with senior wide receiver Tanner Henry for a three-yard touchdown with 8:49 left in the second quarter for a 14-13 lead, but Colorado Mines answered with another score and went into halftime with a 20-17 edge.

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Weston Carr turned a short pass reception into an 85-yard touchdown less than a minute into the third quarter, giving Azusa Pacific a 23-20 edge. After the teams traded punts, Colorado Mines converted on a pair of third downs in an eight-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that pushed the Orediggers in front for good, 27-23, with 7:07 left in the third quarter.

Elffers completed 11-of-14 passes for 219 yards and two touchdowns, while sophomore running back Kurt Scoby returned to the lineup after missing last week's win at Western Oregon for 79 rushing yards on 15 carries.

Colorado Mines was led by senior quarterback Justin Dvorak, who completed 31-of-45 passes for 342 yards and four touchdowns.