Box Score EAGLE ROCK, Calif. – Rush Gym on the campus of Occidental College has always held a special place in the collective hearts of Azusa Pacific volleyball. It's where the Cougars captured their first-ever national championship, winning 8 of 9 matches over the course of 3 days to win the 1979 AIAW title, downing Sacramento State in a winner-take-all single set to cap the title-clinching run.
It's been 25 years since the Cougars were last in Rush Gym, and 47 years since winning the national title, yet in all that time passed, Azusa Pacific still knows how to win in Eagle Rock. Led by match-high 19 kills from both Jackie Winfield and Sarah Wilson, the Cougars beat Occidental, 25-16, 25-14, 27-29, 25-16, Tuesday evening and in the process tied the record for the best start in program history with the Cougars' 13th consecutive win out of the 2026 gate.
Wilson and Winfield powered the Cougars through the first 2 sets, leading an Azusa Pacific offense that attacked at .231 clip while holding Occidental to just a .069 pace.
The Tigers re-grouped and pushed APU in the third set, using a 5-0 run to overcome a 19-16 deficit to assume a 21-19 lead. However, Jacey Loewen and Winfield each tallied a pair of kills to help the Cougars re-take the lead at 24-23. However, Azusa Pacific was unable to capitalize on 3 match points, and a 4-1 Tiger run, led by a pair of kills from Jasmine Shum, gave Occidental a 29-27 third-set verdict.
Azusa Pacific raced out to a 3-0 lead to start the fourth set, and then used a 7-0 run, thanks in part to 3 Winfield kills, to assume an insurmountable 15-6 advantage. From there the Cougars cruised in for the set and match victory.
Loewen finished 12 kills and a .435 attack rate to go along with a match-best 4 block assists. With 17 digs, Wilson collected her eighth double-double of the young season.
Though it's the Cougars' sixth straight win over Occidental, it's their first since 2001, when Azusa Pacific downed Oxy in another 4-set match verdict in the Rush. The 2 teams will meet again in APU's Felix Event Center on Oct. 20.
With the loss, Occidental falls to 5-5. Azusa Pacific moves to 13-0 to match the 2011 Cougars for the best season start in program history. The Cougars will go for the stand-alone record when they host Redlands, Saturday (Sept. 26) at 11 a.m. in the Felix Event Center.
