TEMPE, Ariz. - Azusa Pacific opened its season against No. 10 Arizona State on Friday afternoon at the ASU Cross Conference Challenge, and the Cougars fell to the Sun Devils by a 17-6 score.

Five different Cougars scored in the contest, with Madeline Schultz leading with two goals. In goal, Daniela Herrero Miralles made her debut for Azusa Pacific, finishing with five saves. Maritza Ochoa finished with two steals. 

How It Happened: Arizona State opened the scoring with a goal a little over a minute into the game, but Ochoa would answer right back for the Cougars, as she put one in the back of the cage about 10 seconds later to knot the score at 1-1. Ochoa's goal would be Azusa Pacific's only score of the first half, and the Sun Devils would score eight unanswered to take a 9-1 lead into halftime.

After an early goal in the third period for the Sun Devils would make it 10-1, Montana White would break the Cougars' scoreless drought with her first goal of the season, which made it 10-2 with 4:29 to play in the third. A few possessions later, Schultz scored to make it 10-3. Arizona State would strike twice more over the remainder of the third, which gave the hosts a comfortable 12-3 lead heading into the final eight minutes of action.

The Cougars started the fourth period by scoring three unanswered, as Kyra Kahahawai, Kaelene De Bie and Schultz each delivered a goal over the first three minutes of play to cut the deficit down to 12-6. Arizona State would add four goals over the next three minutes to put the game out of reach.

By the Numbers: Arizona State scored 17 goals on 34 shots (50%), while Azusa Pacific scored its six goals on 28 shots (21%). In powerplay situations, the Sun Devils were 3-for-7 (43%), while the Cougars went 0-for-6. The Sun Devils also posted advantages in blocks (19-6), steals (16-6) and sprints (3-1). 

Quotable: "Our game was a challenging one, but I really admired how the team kept their composure and fought together through the game," head coach Priscilla Gomez. Today's game was the first of Gomez' collegiate head coaching career.

Up Next: The Cougars will be back in the pool tomorrow, as they close out the weekend with two games on the schedule. At 11:00 AM MT (10:00 AM PT), the Cougars will take on No. 7 Michigan, followed by a meeting with California Baptist.