AZUSA, Calif. – Hawai'i Pacific University had an early third quarter slump that allowed an 11-0 run as PacWest Conference leader Azusa Pacific posted a come-from-behind 71-63 win on Saturday at the Felix Event Center.
 
The Sharks (17-7, 15-3) fell to third place in the conference race with the loss, while the Cougars (20-4, 18-1) extended their lead to two games with four left to play in the regular season.
 
The Sharks held a three-point 32-29 lead at halftime and scored twice early in the third quarter to grab a 36-29 advantage after a jumper from senior Senior Samantha Lambrigtsen of Oregon, Ill./Oregon HS. But the Cougars got a 3-pointer from Rachel Bozlee to get on the board to start an 11-0 run to erase the advantage and put APU up to stay. The Cougars used another 9-3 run at the end of the period to hold off an HPU comeback attempt.
 
Senior Breanna Mackenzie of Melbourne, Australia/Box Hill led the way for the Sharks with 12 points, eight rebounds and four steals, while sophomore Alysha Marcucci of Melbourne, Australia/Marist-Sion added 12 points with five boards, five assists and two steals. Freshman Amy Baum of Melbourne, Australia/Rowville Secondary tallied 11 points with five rebounds, three assists and two blocks, with junior Starr Rivera of Honolulu/Roosevelt coming off the bench with 11 points, four rebounds and four assists.
 
APU got a pair of double-doubles and nearly three in getting the important conference victory. Savanna Hanson posted 18 points, 11 rebounds and five assists to lead the way, with Cierra Roufosse scoring 11 points with 11 rebounds. Laura Pranger collected 12 points and nine rebounds to go with five blocked shots and four assists. Bozlee added 10 points.
 
The Sharks were held to just 32 percent shooting from the floor (24-of-76), hitting 36 percent (8-of-22) from the 3-point arc and making 7-of-14 shots (50 percent) from the free throw line. Azusa Pacific shot 42 percent from the field (23-of-55), including 22 percent from the arc (4-of-18). The Cougars nailed 21-of-28 (75 percent) from the charity stripe.
 
There were three ties and three lead changes in the contest, but the Cougars never trailed after gaining the lead with the 11-0 run in the third quarter. The Sharks could close no closer than five points during the fourth quarter of play.
 
HPU has to quickly put the loss behind them as the Sharks started an important four-game southern California road swing against APU. The Sharks visit Concordia Irvine on Monday. Tipoff at CU Arena is slated for 3:30 p.m. HST (5:30 PST).