AZUSA, Calif. - The 2023 campaign has come to an end for the Azusa Pacific men's soccer team, as its final match ended in a 1-1 tie against rival Biola in the Cornerstone Cup. The Cougars end the season with a record of 6-8-3, with a PacWest mark of 5-4-1. 

How It Happened: Just 10 minutes into the match, the Cougars found themselves needing to overcome an early deficit. After a Biola striker was deemed to have been brought down in the box by way of a Cougar foul, the Eagles' Tom Irion had a chance from the spot. Irion buried the penalty kick to put the visitors in front 1-0 in the 10th minute. Azusa Pacific responded well to the early concession, as the Cougars did not allow Biola to create many other chances in the first half and add to the lead. 

In the 36th minute, a Cougar shot on goal was saved by the Biola keeper, but less than 30 seconds later, Zedan Mutlu received a ball from Fritz Oestreicher on the left wing, and after dribbling into the box, Mutlu put a move on the jockeying defender to get by and go one-on-one with the keeper. Despite a tricky angle, Mutlu put plenty of pace on a ball that he zipped right past the keeper to tuck inside the right post for the equalizer. It was Mutlu's second goal of the season.

Over the course of the second half, the Eagles put just one shot on frame, while Azusa Pacific had two opportunities that ended with the ball being put on target.

By the Numbers: The Cougars had 15 shots to 11 for Biola, with each team finishing with four on goal over the 90 minutes. In what was a very physical match, Azusa Pacific was called for 17 fouls, while Biola was whistled for 10, and there were two yellows on the Cougars and one on the Eagles. After the Eagles held possession for 52% of the first half, Azusa Pacific took the advantage in possession over the final 45 minutes of play. At the end of the match, the stats showed that the Cougars possessed the ball for 58% of the contest.

Senior Send Off: With it being the final game of the season, a group of four seniors were honored pregame. Leo Moreno, Juancarlos Rodriguez, Justin Tinajero and Marco Bermudez took to the field for the final time in their careers at Azusa Pacific. "It has been really cool to see this group up over the last four or five years," said head coach Dave Blomquist, "They have meant a ton to the program. They have been fantastic men off the field first and foremost, and they have led us on the field as well."

Coach Blomquist's Thoughts on 2023 Season: "It was a season of ups and downs, but there were moments throughout the year, particularly through some of our form in the second half, that shows we have a lot to work with going forward. We learned a lot through everything that we did this year. We will take some time to rest, but we are really looking forward to the spring and moving into next year when that time comes."