Chandler, Ariz.- After 12 days of being idle, the Firestorm exhibited little to no signs of rust in a complete 118-44 victory over the Justice College Lions. ACU opened with a 46-point first quarter and utilized all 13 active players to achieve 62.0% shooting from the field. Kayla Hourigan tied her career-high points in a single game (20) and Shaylynn De Yager posted a season-high 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting. Madison Kekic maximized her 21 minutes off the bench by leading ACU in assists (8) and accompanying it with five points and eight rebounds.

GAME INFO

Score: Arizona Christian 118 | Justice College 44
Records: ACU 8-2 (0-0 GSAC) | Justice College 0-9 (0-0 SWS)
Location: The Grove Church - Chandler, AZ

STAT TRACKER

Kayla Hourigan - 20 pts, 5 rebs, 1 ast
Shaylynn De Yager - 19 pts, 3 rebs, 2 ast
Emily Till - 13 pts, 3 rebs, 3 ast
Cynthia Lopez - 11 pts, 1 reb, 2 ast
Halle Payne - 10 pts, 6 rebs, 4 ast
Madison Kekic - 5 pts, 8 rebs, 8 ast

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

The opening quarter would end up being the most dominant for the visiting Firestorm. All five starters (Sophia Martinez, Till, Alyssa Alvarez, Payne, and Kayla Clark) did their damage in the first, as they would return for the remaining 30 minutes of play. Till and Payne combined for 10-for-11 shooting, nine rebounds and seven assists as the Firestorm ran up a 46-10 advantage. Justice was held to 3-of-19 from the floor with Nataly Cruz as the top-scoring Lion (5).

A different story unfolded in the second. The Firestorm committed seven fouls in the quarter, which led to seven points from the Lions. Unlike their torrid start (19-for-25), ACU fell sharply to 35% shooting in the second stanza and allowed Justice to hang around. Cynthia Lopez was the bright spot in an otherwise lackluster quarter, draining 3-of-5 three-pointers. Cruz once again led the Lions in scoring, amassing nine points on 3-of-5 shooting.

Following a slightly sluggish end to the first half, the Firestorm rectified any mistakes they had previously made with a lights-out third quarter. ACU forced five turnovers and shot a remarkable 14-for-17 from the field. There was a Firestorm assist on 11 of their 14 made baskets (seven players recorded at least one), and Hourigan and De Yager combined for nine field goals. 

The final 10 minutes were not nearly as dazzling, but ACU closed things out 20-4. Hourigan and De Yager displayed the same level of precision in the fourth quarter, recording 16 combined points. The Firestorm did not concede a single turnover and shut down the Lions' offensive attack (1-for-15). 

THOUGHTS FROM COACH RUSTY ROGERS

"Again, not an easy game to play or coach," Coach Rogers said. "Disappointed in our lack of focus in the second quarter, but the start and second half was played much cleaner and unselfishly. Hopefully, this will springboard us into a good month of competitive basketball!"

NEXT UP FOR THE FIRESTORM

The Firestorm head into a three-game homestand, with Goshen College (IN) (8-3) first up on Saturday. Tipoff will be at 1:00 PM from ACU Events Center. Follow the action with live stats at https://acufirestorm.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary and watch at https://www.gsacsportsnetwork.com/azchristian. 

   
Roll Storm!