AZUSA, Calif. – While Azusa Pacific never trailed in Saturday night's 77-73 win over Western Washington, the game was anything but easy. For all but two minutes of action, the Cougars held a single digit lead as the Vikings hung around to keep within striking distance.

Azusa Pacific needed two clutch free throws from Zoe March with six seconds left to put the game away, as the Cougars clung to a 75-73 lead prior to March's makes. March found herself in the crucial position following a run by the Vikings over the final seven minutes of action. With 7:12 remaining in the contest, Azusa Pacific took its largest lead at 69-56, before Western Washington went on a 17-6 run to make it a one-possession affair with six ticks left. Following March's free throws, Western Washington took one final three-pointer that missed as the buzzer sounded.

"This was a valuable experience for us tonight," said head coach T.J. Hardeman, "when you get a chance to play a great team, with good guard play and tough, physical inside players, you learn a lot about your team. This is the type of game that we see in the postseason, and our team did a good job of answering the call and weathering some runs that Western made tonight."

While the Cougars had a better shooting percentage (47%) from the floor than the Vikings (38%), each team made 27 field goals in the game. Of those 27 field goals for each team, nine were from beyond-the-arc for the Cougars, while Western Washington made eight threes in the game.

Laura Pranger led the way for Azusa Pacific on both ends of the floor, as she posted a double-double and near triple double with 17 points, 10 rebounds and eight blocks. Rachel Bozlee also scored 17 points for the Cougars, as she went 5-for-6 from three and 6-for-7 overall. Pranger and Bozlee were joined in double-figures by March who had 14 points to go along with a game-high five assists. Pranger and March were named to the All-Tournament team for their performance in each of the Cougars' two victories this weekend.

"Tonight was another night that we were able to see this team continue to gel and come together," said Coach Hardeman, "we have so many talented returners that know their roles and do it well, while our new players have fit right on in with that. It is great to see so early in the season."

Heading into the two games this weekend, Pranger was tied for second in the nation in blocked shots with 13. After the weekend's action, she has 23 blocks to start the season.

Azusa Pacific is now 4-0 to start the season for the third time since joining NCAA Division II in 2013. The Cougars will have a little bit of time to rest and prepare for their next opponent, as Azusa Pacific has a 10-day break between games with its next matchup set for Tuesday, November 26 in the Felix Event Center at 5:00 p.m. The Cougars will welcome fellow West region foe Cal State Dominguez Hills. CS Dominguez Hills is currently 3-1 to start the season, and will have played two conference games prior to its trip to Azusa next Tuesday.