AZUSA, CALIF. -- When all else fails, rely on your defense.
And that's what the NAIA's No. 21-ranked Azusa Pacific had to do in order to post a key 66-49 GSAC victory over Concordia Saturday night.
The Cougars' top 2 scorers on the season - Allison Box and Jennifer Barbone - were held to just 19 points, 7 of which came after the game was well in hand. As a result, the Cougars turned to their defensive skill and turned in one of their best efforts of the season, limiting Concordia to a season-low 49 points and just 31% (21-for-68) shooting.
With Azusa Pacific clinging to a 44-41 lead midway through the second half, the Cougars tightened their defensive screws, holding the Eagles to just 3-for-20 shooting over the final 10 minutes of the game. The offense responded with a 14-4 run in which 6 different Cougars scored to push the Azusa Pacific lead to 58-45 with 4:22 left in the game.
"I always thought that if we had the ball more than them, we were going to win," said Cougar coach Danielle Jorgenson. "We made some adjustments in the second half and by doing so held them to just 18 points. We took away a little of that high-low that was hurting us."
Amy Lemm tallied a team-high 15 points to pace the Cougars while Barbone added 13 points, including 11 in the second half. Catherine Solorio also tossed in 13 points.
Concordia was paced by Jaime Gast's 15 points, but she had just 2 in the second half.
Azusa Pacific led 32-31 at the half after sophomore Charlene Simril capped a 7-2 run with a 3-pointer with 2 seconds left. Concordia took its biggest lead of the game at 29-24 on a Lara Hanson trey at the 2:25 mark. However, a pair of Catherine Solorio free throws, followed by 2 free throws by Simril and her 3-pointer gave the Cougars their intermission lead. There were 12 lead changes in the first half. Lemm led all players with 13 first half points.
With the win Azusa Pacific improves to 22-5 overall and 13-3 in the GSAC to remain in a first-place tie with Vanguard. For the first time since 1990, Azusa Pacific sweeps the season series from the Eagles. Concordia falls to 21-9 overall, 10-7 in the GSAC.
