CARSON, Calif. – Azusa Pacific women's soccer beat the Toros of Cal State Dominguez Hills 3-1 on the road Thursday evening to improve to 4-1 on the season. The Cougars trailed one-nil early in the game before scoring the game's final three goals, including two before halftime. 

Azusa Pacific had another two players tally their first goals of the season as freshman Alondra Toledo scored her first collegiate goal to give the Cougars the lead in the first half, while Kayla Grisham scored her first of the season with a header in the second half to stretch the lead. The Cougars have now scored two or more goals in four of their first five matches while a total of eight different players have recorded goals during that span.

"It was fun to watch Alondra (Toledo) get her first career goal and Kayla (Grisham) to get her first one of the season," head coach Brooke Lincoln said, "We had a good bit of adversity with pregame and during the game so really proud to see the girls respond after going down 1-0 early."

How It Happened: Cal State Dominguez Hills scored the first goal of the game on one of their only quality chances of the game when Lex Howard's shot found the top corner from just inside the 18-yard box after a Cougars turnover.

Azusa Pacific quickly responded just over five minutes later when Grisham dribbled past multiple defenders in the midfield to set up the game-tying goal. After a missed opportunity early on in the game, Maddy Morrison was the Cougar that tied it at one apiece via the great build up from Grisham and Randi Macadangdang that beat the Toro's backline for an easy tap-in goal.

"I thought we came out and started the match really well," Lincoln said, "We created a couple of really good chances early that we should have put away. We have to grow in our ability to put more of our chances away especially the early ones."

The Cougars continued to dominate the possession in the first half and would put another into the back of the net in the 33rd minute. After Rilee Bradbury's original shot was blocked, the ball fell to Toledo whose shot found the upper corner from inside the box allowing the Toro's goalkeeper no chance for a save. 

Azusa Pacific would carry its 2-1 lead into halftime and would eventually tack one more on in the final 45 minutes for good measure. After setting up Morrison for the Cougars' first goal of the game, she returned the favor in the 60th minute with a beautifully lofted cross that found Grisham's head and then the back of the net. "Kayla is such a special player and was a real game changer tonight," Lincoln said of her veteran midfielder. Grisham, who actually started at left fullback, moved to the midfield 15 minutes into the first half and had one of her best career games as a Cougar recording an assist and a goal for a three-point night.

Despite trailing 10 minutes into the game, Azusa Pacific controlled the flow of the game throughout the night and outshot the Toros 13-7 including 7-1 in the first half. Ruby Fernandez started for the first time tonight, while Gianna Ocello started for a second consecutive time this season along the Cougars' backline. The Cougars depth continues to shine as they had more than 20 players receive action for the fifth consecutive match. Most notably, Morgan Hall played 59 minutes, while the trio of Maddie Williams, Brooke Bern and Christine Messner each saw 45 minutes off the bench.

"The last 60 minutes of the match we just had to grind out and it was by no means our best soccer," said Lincoln, "We know we have to play a lot better moving forward if we want to be the team we've set out to be and I believe our girls will continue taking steps in that direction. It's an honor to coach this bunch."

Up Next: The Cougars will next face Cal State Los Angeles this coming Saturday, September 18th. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. at the Cougar Soccer Complex. Follow along with live stats here and watch the game live for free here.