AZUSA, Calif. – With a 68-61 win Wednesday night against Concordia, Azusa Pacific has won the PacWest regular season title with over a week left in the regular season, giving the Cougars four PacWest regular season titles as a program, tying Hawai`i Pacific for the second most in modern PacWest history.
 
Azusa Pacific is now 16-1 in conference play this season with two games left on the schedule prior to the PacWest Championships, where the Cougars will now be the No. 1 seed. They will play their quarterfinal game at 7:15 p.m. on March 3 in Fresno.
 
The Cougars opened the conference season on a 14-game winning streak to take a commanding lead in the conference standings. During that time, a handful of teams fought for the No. 2 spot in the standings. Wednesday’s win was the third time that Azusa Pacific had defeated a team that was No. 2 in the PacWest standings at the start of the game.
 
Azusa Pacific is now 155-35 with four conference titles all time. It is the second-most PacWest wins in conference history, and tied for the second-most titles and second-best winning percentage.
 
In the process of clinching a fourth PacWest regular season title, Laura Pranger made some history of her own for the Cougars. With her fourth block in the game, she surpassed Dominican’s Sarah Nelson for the most career blocks in conference history. Pranger finished the game with five blocks and now has 322 career blocks, breaking Nelson’s record, which stood for seven years.
 
Azusa Pacific took a 25-11 lead in the first quarter and never trailed in the game. Kayla Shaw, who is the PacWest leader in 3-pointers made, scored a team-high 19 points. The Cougars got only six of their points in the win from beyond the arc, and instead dominated the paint, outscoring Concordia 36-18 in the paint. Molly Whitmore and Pranger were a combined 11 for 18 in the win, getting most of those points from inside the key.
 
Alex Lowden has been one of the PacWest’s best defensive guards all season, and she made five steals to help the Cougars score 13 points off turnovers. Paige Uyehara is the PacWest leader in assists and she again led the Cougars in that category with five to defeat Concordia.
 
For Concordia, Michaela VanderKlugt nearly finished with a triple-double, tallying 10 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. The two teams will meet again in just over a week as Concordia gets its turn to host on February 26. Both teams are currently ranked in the top-8 of the NCAA West Regional Rankings.
 
Previous PacWest Champions
1992-93: Portland State
1993-94: Portland State
1994-95: Portland State
1995-96: Portland State/Montana State Billings
1996-97: Seattle Pacific
1997-98: Montana State Billings/Seattle Pacific
1998-99: Montana State Billings
1999-00: Western Washington
2000-01: Seattle Pacific
~~
2006-07: Grand Canyon
2007-08: Grand Canyon
2008-09: Grand Canyon
2009-10: Hawai`i Pacific
2010-11: Grand Canyon
2011-12: Grand Canyon
2012-13: California Baptist
2013-14: Academy of Art
2014-15: Hawai`i Pacific
2015-16: Azusa Pacific/California Baptist
2016-17: California Baptist
2017-18: Azusa Pacific/Hawai`i Pacific
2018-19: Azusa Pacific
2019-20: Hawai`i Pacific
2021-22: Azusa Pacific
 
Titles Per Team In The Modern Era (2006-present)
Grand Canyon – 5
Azusa Pacific – 4
Hawai`i Pacific – 4
California Baptist – 3
Academy of Art – 1

Azusa Pacific's PacWest Titles
2012 Women's Cross Country
2013 Women's Cross Country
2013 Women's Soccer
2014 Men's Soccer
2014-15 Men's Basketball
2015-16 Men's Basketball
2015-16 Women's Basketball
2016 Women's Basketball Championships
2016 Softball
2016 Men's Track & Field
2016 Women's Track & Field
2016 Women's Soccer
2017 Men's Track & Field
2017 Women's Track & Field
2017 Baseball
2017-18 Women's Basketball
2018 Men's Tennis
2018 Men's Track & Field
2018 Women's Track & Field
2018 Baseball
2018 Men's Soccer
2018 Volleyball
2018-19 Women's Basketball
2019 Baseball
2019 Men's Track & Field
2019 Women's Track & Field
2019 Men's Soccer
2019 Volleyball
2019-20 Men's Basketball
2021 Women's Tennis
2021 Men's Track & Field
2021 Women's Track & Field
2021 Men's Soccer
2021-22 Women's Basketball

All-Time PacWest Title Leaders (All Sports)
1. BYU-Hawaii 37
2. *Hawai`i Pacific 35
3. *Azusa Pacific 34
3. California Baptist 34
5. Grand Canyon 24
6. Dixie State 21
7. *Hawai`i Hilo 16
8. Alaska Anchorage 15
9. Seattle Pacific 13
10. Montana State Billings 12
11. *Point Loma 10
12. Portland State 9
13. *Academy of Art 8
13. Air Force 8
15. Northern Colorado 6

*Active Members