San Rafael, CALIF. -- Dominican University of California (6-7, 4-2) used overtime to derail a previously seemingly unstoppable force as it arose victorious with a 87-79 victory over nationally ranked conference foe No. 18 Azusa Pacific (10-3, 5-1). 

"Everyday in practice we play a five minute game series and that replicates an overtime period," redshirt senior Brittney Cedeno said. "Going into overtime we were thinking 'this is our bread and butter, we do this every single day.' It was nothing new. It was a situation we don't mind being in as we practice it every single day."

Junior transfer Olga Faasolo saved her best for the big stage with a game-high 22 points, also adding a team-high eight rebounds as six Dominican scorers tallied double-digit point totals. Senior Maiya Flores found a welcomed groove from her sweet spot as she netted 16 points on five 3-pointers shooting 50% on the afternoon from range. Sophomore Aliayah San Juan was given her toughest test to date as she was tasked with guarding 2021-22 All-Pacwest First Team and 2022-23 PacWest Preseason Player of the Year Paige Uyehara who came in averaging 5.3 assists per game with just 2.5 turnovers per game. San Juan clamped down on the PacWest superstar, contributing to Dominican forcing APU's superstar to turn the ball over four times while dishing out just three assists, both well below her season averages. 

Multiple streaks in the early going saw the Cougars hold a game-high lead of 22-6 with just 3:13 remaining in the first quarter, a deficit that was cut to a still-substantial 11 points by the end of the half as Flores buried her first triple with just 54 seconds remaining in the opening frame. The bucket propelled the sharpshooter to a drastic increase in playing time as Flores finished with a season-high 31 minutes ont the afternoon, crushing her previous high of 21 minutes played. 

Uyehara and Flores traded 3s partway through the second stanza before another Cougars' long ball, this time courtesy of Lauren Jones, put the visitors back up by 16. A 9-2 Dominican run kick started by back-to-back buckets from Faasolo and Cedeno preceded a Jenna Duley 3-pointer and a Keyonee Neal layup that brought Dominican back within nine with the score reading 37-28 with 2:08 remaining in the half. Azusa Pacific battled back and put more points on the board to eventually take a 14-point 42-28 lead into the locker rooms as the Penguins continued to search for answers in the early stages. 

A San Juan layup welcomed the foes to the floor before Neal buried a triple cut the lead to single digits less than three minutes into the third quarter. Another series of back-to-back Faasolo-Cedeno buckets set the score to 48-42 in favor of APU minutes later before a Duley layup and a pair of succesful Faasolo free throws led to Dominican narrowly trailing 57-54 by the quarters' end as the Penguins outscored the nationally ranked Cougars 26-15 in the third quarter. 

Dominican took its first lead of the game with 5:59 left on the clock as San Juan nailed a 3-pointer from the top of the arc to put her team up 62-61. Both teams decided to put on a shooting clinic for the crowd as both teams found the bucket on nearly every possession in the ensuing minutes with neither side going up by more than a single possession. The game-tying basket came with just 15 seconds ticks left on the timer as San Juan, again, came up clutch with a fast break layup to set the score at 78 aside before stealing the ball from Uyehara on the final possession of regulation to send the squads to overtime. 

Six straight Cedeno points set the tone for overtime as she helped Dominican jump out to a 84-78 lead aided by stiff defense as Neal and Faasolo both earned steals with Faasolo also adding a rebound on the offensive end. A lone free throw was all Dominican would allow in the extra frame as two successful, late Neal free throws came after she stole the ball with six seconds remaining to seal the deal for Dominican. 

Dominican now looks to enjoy an extended break before returning to the hardwood on Dec. 30 as they take on conference opponent Fresno Pacific on the road.