Azusa Pacific split the first day of the D2 West Region Showcase, recording a mid-afternoon victory to wrap up the first half of the opening day of action before wrapping up the opening day with a three-set defeat to No. 15-ranked Western Washington.

Azusa Pacific 3, Sonoma State 0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-21)

Azusa Pacific won the first set by a final score of 25-20. The Cougars were led by junior Sara Wagenveld in the first set, as Wagenveld posted a perfect hitting percentage (1.000) with five kills. Wagenveld was set up by the setter tandem of senior Kaylen Higa (seven assists) and freshman Chase Davis (six assists). Senior Natalie Klapp and freshman Katarina Radisic had four digs each, which was the team high in the first set. Sonoma State hung around throughout most of the opening set before Wagenveld closed the door with back-to-back kills to put away the Seawolves in set one.

In the second set, the Cougars created separation with a 6-0 run, turning a 9-9 tie into a 15-9 lead. Higa and Davis both dished out six assists in the second set, with Radisic collecting a team-high five kills in the second set. Sophia Newhouse recorded nine digs in the set to help the Cougars secure a 2-0 lead in the match. 

Azusa Pacific fell behind early in the third set, trailing 9-5, but the Cougars responded by winning five straight points and taking a 10-9 lead. While it was a back and forth third set, Azusa Pacific eventually wrapped up the match victory with a 25-21 advantage in the third set. Radisic had four kills, in the final set, while Davis finished with six assists and Newhouse had five digs. 

In the match overall, Radisic led the Cougars with 11 kills, while Wagenveld finished with nine, and Klapp and junior Julianne Miller both finished with seven kills. Higa and Davis both had 17 assists in the victory, while Newhouse tallied 17 digs. 

#15 Western Washington 3, Azusa Pacific 0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-15)

The second game of the day for the Cougars proved to be a very tough matchup. In the first set, both teams traded leads. However, Western Washington created separation with a 5-0 run to take a 19-14 advantage over Azusa Pacific and claim the set, 25-19. After dropping the second set by a 25-22 margin, the Cougars were not able to slow down Western Washington, which scored seven straight points and took control of the set with a 21-11 advantage before eventually taking the set 25-15. 

Junior Aliyah Morrison had 10 kills for the Cougars, while Miller had nine kills and Radisic finished with eight kills. Higa finished with 21 assists. Newhouse led the Cougars with 17 digs, with Klapp and Radisic adding 14 kills to the effort as well.  

WHAT'S NEXT

Azusa Pacific has two games remaining in the D2 West Region Showcase, taking on Northwest Nazarene on Saturday, September 1, at 12:00 pm, with a second match that day against No. 9 Cal State San Bernardino at 5:00 p.m.

The Cougars have split matches on each of their first three days of competition so far this season, moving to 3-3 on the year.