FRESNO, Calif. - Azusa Pacific opened up play at the Fresno State Invitational on Friday, beating Fresno Pacific by a 12-6 score. The Cougars have now won three games in a row, improving their record to 4-5 overall.

Madeline Schultz scored five goals, Shyanna Rainey added three goals, and Maria Boix Pascual dished out three assists offensively. Defensively, Montana White had three steals, while Rainey had two. In goal, Daniela Herrero Miralles earned the victory with 13 saves.

How It Happened: The Cougars outscored the Sunbirds in each of the four periods, but the widest gap in goal production between the two sides came in the first quarter, when Azusa Pacific put five in the back of the net, while the Sunbirds scored just two goals. The Cougars opened the game with four unanswered goals over the first four and a half minutes to play. From that point on, the Cougars were able to maintain a cushion of three goals or more for the remainder of the contest.

In both the second and third periods, Azusa Pacific outscored the Sunbirds by a 3-2 tally, and a powerplay goal by White with 6:29 remaining in the game was the lone goal of the fourth quarter.

Throughout the game, the Cougars stifled any hopes of a comeback for Fresno Pacific, as the Sunbirds' largest unanswered goal run was two. 

By the Numbers: The Cougars finished with a shot percentage of 52%, converting on 12 of 23 attempts, while the Sunbirds finished at 21% on 6-for-29. The lone penalty shot in the game was scored by Maritza Ochoa, as she put one past the keeper to put the Cougars ahead 2-0 with 6:32 on the clock.

Up Next: The Cougars will play two games in Fresno tomorrow, with the first at 10:00 am against UC Davis, and an afternoon matchup at 3:30 pm against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.