AZUSA, Calif – Azusa Pacific battled hard on homecoming night, but fell to Biola 2-1 on a last-minute penalty. The APU and BU rivalry still runs deep, as evidenced by a combined 8 cards and 2 penalty kicks.

The Cougars found rhythm early in the first half, outshooing Biola 5-2 and earning 3 corners. APU thought it had gotten on the scoreboard first in the 8th minute when a shot from Mario Shuteriqi ricocheted off the crossbar and was rebounded into the back of the net, but it was ruled offside. Instead, it was a Biola corner kick in the 26th minute that opened the scoring. The Cougars responded just 14 seconds later when Osmin Carranza was fouled inside the box. The resulting penalty was buried by Luis Solis for his sixth goal of the year, and the teams entered halftime all square.

In the 75th minute, the Cougars were given an advantage when the Eagles were reduced to 10 men after a defender saw his second yellow card of the night. Less than five minutes later, a brief scuffle between a Cougar and an Eagle nearly resulted in another red card for Biola, but the referee chose to let play continue without booking either player.

The Cougars thought they had taken the lead in the 80th minute when Solis lobbed the goalkeeper, but a recovering Biola defender was able to clear it off the line. With just 49 seconds left on the clock, the Eagles converted a game-winning penalty after one of their players was fouled in the Cougar penalty area.

Inside the Box Score: 

• The Cougars outshot the Eagles 12-9 (7-6 on goal)
• Solis lead both teams with 4 total shots, 3 of which were on target
• Both teams finished even on fouls, with 17 apiece
• APU received 4 yellow cards, while Biola received 3 yellows and 1 red

Up Next: Azusa Pacific (4-7-3 and 3-2-2 in PacWest) look to bounce back against the 2024 PacWest regular season champions on Wednesday Oct. 29, when they play away at Point Loma. Kickoff in San Diego is scheduled for 3:45 p.m.