BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Azusa Pacific battled through 110 minutes of regulation and overtime before defeating Western Washington in a dramatic penalty shootout (6-5), sending the Cougars to the Sweet 16. This is the furthest the Cougars have ever made it in post-season play since joining the NCAA in 2014.
"This was the vision from Day 1- to compete at the highest level and honor God while we did it," said Head Coach Brooke Lincoln when reflecting on the win. "Keeping Jesus at the center of everything we're doing has always been the priority. I'm almost at a loss for words to see it come to fruition, because this is what we've worked so hard for over the last eight years. And behind every good head coach, there's an even better assistant coach- and that's Adam (James) for sure."
The Cougars found themselves chasing the game after WWU went up 1-0 in the first half. The Vikings converted a free kick in the 24th minute, scoring off a header, to take the early lead. The Cougars were held to just 2 shots in the first half, neither on target, while Western Washington created 10 shots with 3 on target in the opening 45 minutes.
Azusa Pacific looked like a different team coming out of the locker room. After a formation change to be more offensively threatening, the Cougars generated more attacking chances, taking 7 shots in the 2nd half. However, as the minutes ticked down, WWU looked like it would be able to hold APU off to go through to the next round of playoffs.
In the 89th minute, Faith Crouse chased down a ball near the corner flag and sent it across the box. It skipped twice through traffic before Zoey Kuhn met it on the half-volley and buried it in the back of the net to keep the Cougars' season alive. The goal marked Kuhn's 8th of the season and 3rd of the tournament, continuing her postseason tear.
Neither team could find the winner in the last minute of regulation, nor in either of the 10 minute sudden-death overtime periods.
Forced to decide the match in penalties, the Cougars stepped into the moment carrying the sting of their last shootout: an 0-3 loss to Dominican in the PacWest semifinals. But tonight, they were unrecognizable. In goal, Alexia Muniz delivered huge stops on two Western Washington shots: one save that kept the Cougars alive, and another save that sent the Cougars through.
"At the end of the day, it's all in the Lord's hands" said Muniz when asked about what it felt like to step into the spotlight during the biggest moment of her soccer career. "He put me on this field for a reason, He put me at APU for a reason, He put me with these girls for a reason, and I couldn't be more grateful to be here at APU and show up for the team when they needed me the most."
From the spot, Camila Hernandez, Kuhn, Anela Sandobal, Paris Coleman, Sophia Emerson, and finally Sarah Goodwin all buried their attempts with confidence. APU sealed the shootout 6–5 and punched its ticket to the Sweet 16.
Up Next: Azusa Pacific now awaits the winner of Simon Fraser vs. Cal Poly Pomona to determine its Sweet 16 opponent next Saturday.
