AZUSA, Calif. -- Senior pitcher Narissa Garcia doubled her win total in the 2016 season, earning the victory in both wins of the Cougars' sweep of NCAA Division II ranked No. 7 Adelphi on Friday evening at the Cougar Softball Complex.

Garcia threw 5.1 innings with just one earned run allowed to lead the Cougars to an 8-3 triumph in the opener. Then in the second game, the senior threw three scoreless innings in relief to hold onto a one-run lead for a 4-3 win. With the wins, Azusa Pacific improves to 9-4 on the season with wins in seven of its last eight games.

The Cougars scored runs in each of the last five innings of the first game to give plenty of run support to Garcia, who didn't allow a run in the first five frames and retired 12 batters in a row.

A trio of doubles in the third inning by Cayla Broussard, Nicki Sprague, and Kayla Jimenezhelped give the Cougars a 3-0 lead. Then the Cougars did the damage in the fourth inning with their legs with three infield singles and three stolen bases, including Broussard stealing home on a double steal for a 4-0 lead.

Jimenez doubled again in the fifth inning and a single by Annie Sisler set up another perfectly executed double steal for a 5-0 lead.

The Cougars added three more in the bottom of the sixth inning, started a Sprague single for her fourth hit of the game. Following a walk, Jimenez blasted a three-run home run over the right-centerfield fence for her third extra-base hit of the game and a total of five runs batted in.Ariana Von Zboray recorded the final five outs of the game to secure the Cougar victory.

In the second game Carly Xepoleos was locked in a pitching duel with Panther Lindsay Mapes. Xepoleos faced the minimum nine batters in the first three innings, while Mapes had allowed just the one hit by either team in the first three frames.

However, in the top of the fourth inning, the Panthers broke the scoreless tie with a pair of hits and help from a couple errors to put three runs on the board for their first lead of the evening.

The Cougars bounced back right away, scoring all four of their runs in the game in the bottom half of the frame. Bunt singles by both Broussard and Sprague followed by a walk loaded the bases with no outs for the Cougars before true freshman Christine Piñela delivered the big blow with a shot into right-centerfield gap, driving in all three runs and sliding into third base with a triple. Sisler then laid down a sacrifice bunt to send home the go-ahead run.

Garcia came back into the game for the final three innings to defend the 4-3 lead. Garcia retired the side in order in the fifth inning, but in the sixth faced a bases-loaded no-out situation. However, the veteran got the next three batters in a row to go down swinging to get out of the jam unscathed, preserving the one-run advantage.

In the top of the seventh, Garcia had a pair of two-out walks with full counts, but facing a full count again on the next batter, recorded a strikeout looking to complete the sweep against Adelphi. Garcia is now 4-1 on the season. The Cougars play again next weekend as they host a pair of doubleheaders against Dixie State on Friday and Saturday.