AZUSA, Calif. – While the humidity proved a challenging foe on Labor Day, Leke Ademola made sure the result would not be in doubt, scoring three in the first half as the Cougars defeated Lewis & Clark by a 5-0 final Monday afternoon at the Cougar Soccer Complex.
Ademola got on the scoreboard early, cheating in a cross from Mario Shuteriqi in only the 6th minute to give Azusa Pacific a lead it would never relinquish.
Just ten minutes later, the lead would double. Shuteriqi fired a shot from the upper right section of the box that was saved, but the rebound spilled past a River Otter defender and found Joshua Lugo, who blasted it into the top middle of the net to make it 2-0.
In the 25th minute, a River Otter clearance attempt off a goal kick went awry, bouncing off Gabe Schock and bouncing straight to Ademola in the center of the box. A left-footed strike later and the Cougars had their third. Ademola would complete the hat trick in the dying minutes of the half, when Easton Jara slotted a ground ball through to the senior forward at the top of the box. He dribbled to the right of the penalty spot and stuffed a ground ball into the lower left corner of the net to give the Cougars a 4-0 lead at the half.
Edgar Auscencio would tack on a fifth for the Cougars just five minutes before the end when he fired in a rebound after his first shot was saved by the River Otters' keeper.
In all, the Cougars outshot Lewis & Clark 28-1, including 12-0 in shots on goal. While he did not have to make a save, Jacob Cristo went the full 90 minutes in net to record the shutout. Trying to give as many players experience as possible on this muggy afternoon, 21 Cougars saw playing time, with defender Logan Coffin the only field player to see more than 70 minutes of action.
Now 2-1 on the season, Azusa Pacific will play their third home game in less than a week on Wednesday, when they welcome Life Pacific to the Cougar Soccer Complex. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
