HONOLULU, Hawaii – In a fight down the stretch to make one last Division II tournament, every little bump in the road can prove costly.  So it was Thursday evening as the Cougars saw an 11-point edge in the third quarter disappear, falling 59-54 to Hawai'i Pacific.

How It Happened: The first quarter seemed to go swimmingly, as Azusa Pacific scored the first seven points of the game and kept the Sharks off the board for over five minutes.  An 8-2 run that included a pair of threes gave the Cougars a 15-8 lead after one.  And after a brief flurry from Hawai'i Pacific to start the second, the Cougars would pull away again, with Elyse Mitchell and Lauren Jones combining to score the final nine points of the first half to give the Cougars a 33-22 lead at intermission.

But everything changed coming out of the locker rooms. The Sharks opened the half with a 9-1 run to cut the lead to just two points.  The Cougars trod water for the rest of the quarter, holding a slim lead to the end of the period at 44-40.  But the Sharks opened the final period with six straight points to take their first lead of the night.  Jones would give the Cougars back the lead with a jumper at the 6:12 mark.  However, the Cougars would go six minutes without another field goal; and Hawai'i Pacific would use that time to go on a 9-2 run to pull off the upset.

By the Numbers: Jones did her best to keep the Cougars in front, leading all players in the game with both 17 points and 8 rebounds.  Azusa Pacific won the rebounding battle 42-27, but that was in large part to 16 offensive rebounds. The Sharks shot 14-25 from the field in the second half, compared to the Cougars' 6-26.  Azusa Pacific's 18 field goals made in the game tied their season low from the opening game against Cal State San Marcos. The loss snapped a 10-game winning streak against Hawai'i Pacific that started back at the 2021 NCAA West Regional.  The Cougars lead the all-time series, 16-12.

Up Next: Now with basically no margin for error, the Cougars (18-8, 14-5 PacWest) will head to the Big Island to wrap up their road trip against Hawai'i Hilo.  Tipoff on Saturday is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. HST (6:00 Pacific).