SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. – The Cougars had their best offensive day of the season, finishing off a thoroughly convincing 6-0 victory over Academy of Art Saturday afternoon at Paul Goode Field. The Cougars got goals from five different players in the win.
How It Happened: The scoring opened in the 20th minute. Having earned a corner kick, Bethany Tee sent the ball curling toward the near post. Rilee Bradbury's header was saved off the line, but the ball stayed in a dangerous spot for defender Kylie Carwitz, who got her head to the rebound and put it in the upper half of the net for a 1-0 advantage.
It would take just three minutes for the Cougars to double their advantage, as Kayla Grisham got the ball to Katie Prado just above the top of the box. The midfielder fired a shot toward the top middle of the goal, and the Urban Knights' keeper misplayed it, resulting in another goal for the visitors.
The Cougars continued to pour on the pressure, and in the 31st minute, Nora Oldmark would slam home a rebound to increase the advantage to three. Continuing their high press, Ruby Fernandez would win control of the ball three minutes later and send a pass forward to a cutting Evelina Von Euler, who slotted a shot inside the left post for her third goal of the season.
Five minutes later, Von Euler would add an assist to her credit, finding Oldmark for a one-timer on the left side of the box for her second of the contest and third of the road trip, making the score 5-0 heading into halftime. Mackenzie Jerome was credited with assists on both of Oldmark's goals as well. Three minutes into the second half, the Cougars would add one more as Mackenzie Coleman drove into the box and dished the ball to Aubrey Dunaway, allowing the freshman to pick up her first collegiate goal.
Inside the Numbers: The Cougars dominated statistically, registering 43 shots, including 21 on target, while allowing just a single shot that sailed wide. Bella Hara made her first start of the season in goal and picked up the shutout. In all, the Cougars were credited with eight assists on their six goals. Azusa Pacific won their second straight game against Academy of Art by a 6-0 score, having won by that same margin at home last October. The Cougars improved their overall record against Academy of Art to 8-1-1, and have outscored the Urban Knights head-to-head by a margin of 30-5.
Quotable: "Proud of all our players this weekend." said head coach Brooke Lincoln. "We gave up one shot today. We are proud of that and 19 players saw a lot of time today which is always rewarding." Lincoln continued, "We had good focus and a business mindset. Back to business on Monday."
Up Next: Azusa Pacific (5-2-3, 2-0-1 PacWest) will head south next Saturday for a showdown against preseason conference favorite Point Loma at 11:30 a.m. The Sea Lions defeated the Cougars in a non-conference matchup earlier this season. The game can be livestreamed HERE.
