As efficient as the tandem was at the offensive end, it was really their defense that paved the for the easy victory and freight load of easy baskets. The Cougar pair collected a whopping 14 steals, 7 apiece, and applied an all-night ball-hawking orneriness that forced Mt. Vernon guards to collapse under the pressure.
Somers and Leathers keyed a 14-3 run midway through the first half to blow open the game and give Azusa Pacific a comfortable double-digit lead that it maintained the rest of the night for all but 2 minutes. With the Cougars up 19-18 8 minutes into the game, the Cougars went on their run, forcing Mt. Vernon into 7 turnovers in just a 4-minute span. Leathers had 3 steals on 3 consecutive Mt. Vernon possessions to start the run. MVNU guards wilted under the duress and the visitors from Ohio committed 13 turnovers and missed 7-of-10 shots over the final 12 minutes of the half, allowing the Cougars to scoot out to 48-27 lead, thanks to a 29-9 blitz to close the half.
The second half was academic. Mt. Vernon never got any closer than 14 the rest of the way.
Sommers led all players with 23 points, 17 of which came in the first half, including 6 off her own steals and subsequent lay-ups. Alyssa Ferdaszewski added 16 points, including 11 in the first half.
In all, Azusa Pacific forced Mt. Vernon Nazarene into a whopping 29 turnovers, which the Cougars turned into 35 points, nearly half of the output for the contest. The forced turnovers at the MVNU end led to a seemingly endless number of easy baskets for Azusa Pacific, which out-scored Mt. Vernon, 26-0 on fast-break points.
Mt. Vernon’s starting backcourt of Rachel Fiely (9 turnovers), Katie Keller (6) and Ashley Brown (4) combined for 19 turnovers. Amy Sebastian led Mt. Vernon Nazarene with 20 points while Kelller added 18.
Azusa Pacific improves to 2-2 on the season while Mt. Vernon Nazarene suffers its third straight loss and falls to 4-3 on the campaign.
