NAMPA, Idaho – Azusa Pacific finished off its first day of the new season with a second-consecutive straight-set sweep, defeating Texas A&M International (25-16, 25-21, 25-19) at the Northwest Nazarene Invitational. 

Annaka Jorgenson and Kyra Palmbush led the offensive attack for the Cougars, with Jorgenson finishing with 11 kills and Palmbush tallying 10. The duo was set up by Aubrea Banfield (19 assists) and Maggie Nielsen (13 assists), and Banfield also added five points via service aces for the Cougars. Defensively, five Cougars turned in multi-block performances, led by three apiece from Palmbush and Delaney Dunham. Selena Balderas notched a match-high 14 digs, and Jorgenson added 10 of her own. 

How It Happened: The first set saw the Dust Devils take an early 9-6 lead on the Cougars, however, Azusa Pacific would take 11 of the next 13 points to surge ahead by a 19-12 tally. Texas A&M International would draw no closer than six in the opening set, which allowed the Cougars to take the 1-0 match lead. 

The momentum remained with the Cougars into the next set, as they would double up the Dust Devils at a 16-8 margin. Despite the large lead, Azusa Pacific would steadily see the advantage shrink, and the Dust Devils drew within one point at 22-21. The Cougars would end up hanging on, as a Palmbush kill, followed by an ace from Banfield gave the Cougars match point (24-21), and an attack error from the Dust Devils would put an end to the second set.

Late in the third set, with Azusa Pacific clinging to a 19-18 advantage, the Cougars would use a 6-1 run to shut the door on the Dust Devils, as Katarina Radisic delivered the match-clinching point via a kill to improve the Cougars' early season record to 2-0.

By The Numbers: The Cougars saw steady improvement throughout the match in the category of hitting percentage, as they posted a 25% mark in the first, followed by 29% in the third, and capped off by a 33% performance in the final set. On the other side of the net, the Dust Devils did not have a set in which they hit above 21%, and they posted a percentage of -.03 in the opening set. Azusa Pacific did not commit a block error or ball-handling error in the match. The Cougars are now 2-0 all-time against Texas A&M International, as they defeated the Dust Devils by a 3-1 score in 2013.

Up Next: The Cougars will close out the Northwest Nazarene Invitational with two games on Friday, as they open with the hosts at 2:00 pm Mountain time (1:00 pm Pacific time), followed by a match against Emory and Henry (Virginia) at 4:30 pm Mountain time (3:30 pm Pacific time). The Cougars are 4-2 all-time against Northwest Nazarene, including straight-set sweeps in both of their last two meetings (2021 & 2018), while it will be the first time facing Emory and Henry in program history.