Phoenix, AZ- On Thursday night, all the stats were virtually the same between Arizona Christian and Hope International except for one- the score- as HIU beat ACU 4-0.

The Firestorm (8-7-1, 3-4-1 GSAC) managed three of the first four shots of the game.  Unfortunately, the fifth shot of the evening found the back of the net for the Royals (9-4-2, 5-3 GSAC) in the 16th minute.

Despite holding the shooting edge 6-3 at the break, ACU remained down 1-0.

After a back and forth first 15 minutes of the second half, the game took a dramatic turn when HIU capitalized on a free kick played quickly that appeared to catch ACU a little off guard.

Hope International added two more goals later in the half to make the game appear more lopsided than it actually played out.

Senior Alonso Quintero and Sophomore Damian Sanchez both took three shots.  Junior Carlos Morales and Freshman Trey Ratkovich each had a pair of shots.

At the end of the match, the teams both fired off 13 shots with four needing to be saved.  ACU held a 7-6 edge in corner kicks.  HIU was whistled for just one more foul.

In the push for the playoffs, Arizona Christian sits tied for fifth in the GSAC standings with two games to play and the top six advancing to postseason.

On Saturday, the Firestorm will host #12 Vanguard at the Rose Mofford Sports Complex.  Start time is set for 1:30 pm.