AZUSA, Calif. -- Faced with adversity and a physical opponent, the Azusa Pacific men's soccer team closed out its home schedule with a gritty 1-0 win over the Fresno Pacific Sunbirds Thursday evening at the Cougar Soccer Complex, taking a big step towards a potential PacWest Conference Championship. Senior Jonah Peck did the honors in his final home contest, scoring the game-winner early in the second half.
How it Happened:  Despite the low foul totals in the first half, it was a very physical game. One of the few fouls that was called resulted in a straight red card that meant the home team would play a man down for the final 58 minutes of the match. Scoring chances were few and far between during the first half, with each side managing just a single shot on goal in the opening 45 minutes.
Reduced to 10 players, the Cougars struck early in the second half. Just 90 seconds after the half started, Joseph Macpherson launched a long ball into the offensive half. Marco Astorga chested it down and took a couple of speculative dribbles to his left before slotting a ball along the ground past the Sunbird defenders that found Jonah Peck sprinting into the box, where his low shot beat the keeper to the right post for his second career goal and first ever at home.
With a lead to protect, the Cougars were somewhat more selective in their attacking opportunities over the final 40 minutes, but still created chances to keep the Sunbirds honest. Brendan Fix was forced to make a pair of important saves in the final half hour, most notably on a header from eight yards out in the 71st minute, but it was enough to seal the win.
By the Numbers: Peck's goal was his first since the 2018 season at Concordia. Fix recorded three saves for his fourth shutout of the season and the 11th of his career. Fix ends his career with a 4-0 record against Fresno Pacific, though this was the first time he earned a clean sheet against them. With the win, Azusa Pacific pulled even in the all-time series against the Sunbirds, as each team has now beaten the other 28 times, with three ties. The win was the 150th at Azusa Pacific for head coach Dave Blomquist. Before the game, the team honored 13 members of their senior class, who between them have now won 52 games and scored 82 goals over the past four seasons.
Playoff Implications: Coupled with results from elsewhere in the conference, the Cougars (11-2-2 overall, 7-1-1 PacWest) and Point Loma (11-4-1, 8-2) are now the only teams left with a chance to win the conference championship and with it an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. If the Cougars win their remaining game at Biola on Saturday, they will clinch their third PacWest championship since 2018. A tie or loss will hand the Sea Lions the title and leave the Cougars hoping for an at-large berth.
Up Next: The Cougars will conclude the regular season with a Cornerstone Cup showdown against Biola, who are themselves fighting for consideration as an at-large team. The kickoff in La Mirada is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
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