Azusa Pacific suffered its first loss of the season on Saturday night, as Chico State defeated the Cougars by a final score of 1-0.

The Cougars fell behind early in the match when Chico State's Susana Garcia found the back of the net in the 9th minute of action. For the rest of the half, it was a close battle, with the Cougars totaling five shots and three corner kicks in pursuit of the equalizer. Azusa Pacific had a chance with five seconds remaining in the half, but Sydney Smith's shot was saved by the Chico State goalkeeper with a diving effort.

It was a hard fought second half as well, led by a Cougar defense that did not allow many legitimate chances for Chico State. In the offensive half, the Cougars took five shots but the equalizer never came. 

By the Numbers: Azusa Pacific collected eleven shots, with three on target. Amy Bishop and Brooke Bern both had a multi-shot game, while six other Cougars also tallied a shot. The Cougars finished with six corners. Twenty players saw action in the match tonight for the Cougars, with Bella Hara playing all 90 minutes and collecting three saves at goal.

Quotable: "We had a player after the game make a comment 'if we would have played like we did the last five minutes the whole 90 minutes, it could have been a different result'," said head coach Brooke Lincoln. "I told them failure is a part of life and that this won't be the first time that they fail, and that's okay, we don't have to be afraid of failing, but can we fail forward."

Up Next: Azusa Pacific is 1-1 on the season and will look to bounce back on Thursday, September 9, as the Cougars take on Cal Poly Pomona in a home match that will kick-off at 7:00 pm. 

POSTGAME INTERVIEW: BELLA HARA & KAYLA GRISHAM