Atherton, Calif.- A dismal opening quarter (30-5, Menlo) dug a hole too deep for the Firestorm to climb out of, as they fell to the Oaks 77-43 in their first conference game. Season lows in points (43), field goal percentage (23.8) and three-pointers made (2) all contributed to a disappointing team performance. Despite the end result, Emily Till racked up her fourth straight double-double (11 points, 12 rebounds) and a season-high three steals. 

GAME INFO

Score: Arizona Christian 43 | Menlo College 77
Records: ACU 10-5 (0-1 GSAC) | Menlo College 7-4 (1-0 GSAC)
Location: Haynes-Prim Pavilion - Atherton, CA

STAT TRACKER

Emily Till  - 11 pts, 12 rebs, 2 ast
Halle Payne - 10 pts, 4 rebs, 1 blk
Alyssa Alvarez - 8 pts, 1 rebs, 2 stl
Sophia Martinez - 6 pts, 1 rebs, 1 stl
Kayla Clark - 2 pts, 4 rebs, 2 ast

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

There was nothing to write home about in the Firestorm's first quarter of GSAC play, as they shot 1-for-14 from the field and surrendered a season-high 30 points to the Oaks. Four players on Menlo posted at least five points, led by Shay Boley's seven. The Oaks were a perfect 3-for-3 behind the three-point arc and 11-for-15 from the floor.

Compared to the opening 10 minutes, ACU shrank the competitive chasm in the second quarter (14-10, Menlo). The Oaks extended a scoring run from the first quarter that ended at 19-0 with 6:26 left in the half. Alyssa Alvarez and Emily Till carried the offensive burden, responsible for all 10 Firestorm points. This marked only the second time in 15 games that ACU has not recorded a single assist in a quarter (October 28 vs. Embry-Riddle (AZ)).

After calming the storm a bit, the Firestorm began to find their rhythm in the third quarter. Besides featuring five different scorers, ACU earned nine free throws and never let Menlo run and hide on additional scoring runs (4-0 was the longest). Halle Payne put up eight of her 10 total points in the third on 3-of-5 shooting. 

Trailing by 29 points, the Firestorm certainly fought till the very end but resorted to the three-ball, and struggled mightily (1-for-9). Sophia Martinez landed the Firestorm's lone three-pointer with 5:53 remaining. Till collected four points and three rebounds to cement yet another double-double. In all, Menlo had five players score in the double digits, out-rebounded ACU 49-36 and closed with a 47.6 field goal percentage. 

THOUGHTS FROM COACH RUSTY ROGERS

"Total first quarter meltdown," Coach Rogers said. "We couldn't hit the ocean with our shots and we played no defense… We could have just thrown in the towel but gradually we got ourselves together… At this point, we have to re-access where we are and figure out a way to get back on track before we let this potentially great season get away from us. I'm confident we will embrace the challenge!"

NEXT UP FOR THE FIRESTORM

The Firestorm seek to balance out a two-game road trip in Northern California with Jessup (14-1) on Saturday. Tipoff will come at 12:00 PM MST from Warrior Arena. Follow the action with live stats at https://jessupathletics.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary and watch the broadcast at https://www.gsacsportsnetwork.com/azchristian. 
   

Roll Storm!