AZUSA, Calif. - Azusa Pacific closed out their four game series against Dominican splitting the two games on Saturday.

The Cougars fought hard in the first game but ended up losing 2-1 in extra innings. They were able to bounce back in the second game, securing a 2-1 victory due to a great outing from Liz Phillips. 

GAME ONE: Dominican 2, Azusa Pacific 1

The Cougars got off to a hot start in the first when Carley Gay laced a triple to left then scored on a sacrifice fly by Izzy Rivera. The game remained 1-0 in favor of the Cougars until the fifth when Dominican tied it up. 

Azusa Pacific then found themselves in scoring situations in the fourth to the seventh inning where they got a runner on third each of those innings, but were never able to push across a run. 

The game remained tied at 1-1 until the ninth inning when Dominican took the lead due to a bases loaded walk with two outs. The Cougars were able to get Kinsey Erickson and Gay aboard to start the bottom half of the ninth, but Dominican was able to retire the next three Cougars in order to seal the game.

Katie Korstrom had a great outing on the mound despite taking the loss, going all nine innings and only surrendering two runs while striking out 5.

GAME TWO: Azusa Pacific 2, Dominican 1

An outstanding pitching performance from Liz Phillips and a clutch bottom of the sixth led Azusa Pacific to a game two and series victory over the Penguins.

After surrendering a run to Dominican in the first inning, Phillips was spectacular throughout the rest of her outing, holding Dominican scoreless over the following six innings and striking out three.

The Cougars got their offense rolling in the second when Jaelah Burrell ripped a double to left center and was then driven in by a Julia Olivares single. After the second, the Cougars were held quiet until the sixth when Katie Korstrom hit a triple down the right field line to lead off the inning. Pinch-hitter Bella Fraser then hit a sacrifice fly to center field that was deep enough to score pinch-runner Sommer Quinones from third. 

This proved to be enough as Phillips retired the side in order in the seventh to seal the 2-1 victory for Azusa Pacific.

By the Numbers: Korstrom turned in a 5-for-8 day at the plate with a double and a triple, while nine different Cougars picked up a hit over the two games. Azusa Pacific also had three stolen bases on the day, which makes that 27 total as a team so far this season. As PacWest play is in the home stretch, the race to earn one of the four spots in the Conference tournament is heating up. The Cougars are currently fourth in the PacWest standings with a 13-11 record, sitting below Dominican (3rd), Biola (2nd) and Concordia (1st). 

Up Next: Azusa Pacific will be back at the Cougar Softball Complex this Monday, April 17th for a doubleheader against Holy Names. First pitch is set for 4:00 p.m.