COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The 2018-19 Azusa Pacific women's basketball season will always be remembered by its fans for the final 3.2 seconds of the NCAA West Regional, but the historic season that was full of memorable moments came to a conclusion on Tuesday morning when Indiana (Pa.) defeated the Cougars, 73-60 in Alumni Hall.

The Cougars finished the season with a 28-6 record, reaching the Elite Eight for the first time since making the transition to NCAA Division II in 2012-13. Azusa Pacific got off to a slow start to the season with a 3-3 record and then lost All-American point guard Zoe March to injury. The Cougars bounced back to win 25 of 27 games with several memorable moments along the way.

Azusa Pacific defeated their toughest PacWest competitor, Hawai`i Pacific, in the NCAA Division II showcase game on ESPN3. The Cougars went on to clinch the PacWest regular season title and then defeat Dominican in the regular-season finale to become the first PacWest team in conference history to win 21 conference games in one season. They reached the PacWest Championships final and entered the NCAA West Regional as the No. 4 seed. After an exciting win over Cal Poly Pomona, Azusa Pacific upset No. 1 seed UC San Diego, which had been undefeated on the season. Finally, there was the buzzer-beater by Lydia Nieto to book the Cougars' spot in the Elite Eight.

Seeded No. 6 in the Elite Eight, Azusa Pacific never led against Indiana (Pa.). However, the Cougars went on a 10-0 run out of the halftime break to tie the game, 37-37 on a pair of Savanna Hanson jumpers. The junior was an All-American honorable mention and finished the second half with 12 points.

The Crimson Hawks responded with an 11-0 run in less than two minutes as they suddenly caught fire from beyond the arc. Indiana (Pa.) led for the rest of the game to return to the NCAA Division II semifinals for the second year in a row.

Daylee Hanson scored a team-high 14 points and Rachel Bozlee added 13 points for the Cougars. Laura Pranger finished the game with 11 points, five rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Azusa Pacific has two seniors on its roster and Samantha Huddleston and Meg van Rijn each played in the final minutes of the game to conclude their collegiate careers in the brick and black. For head coach TJ Hardeman, the team's 28 wins ties his most since 2011 when he led the Cougars to the NAIA National Championship.