Glendale, Ariz. - The Lady Firestorm have home-court advantage in the final week of conference play this 2023-24 season. Other than the regular season coming to a close, the Firestorm's GSAC playoff seeding will be determined based on how everything shakes up. The sprint to Menlo College begins Thursday night with Hope International (13-9, 5-7 GSAC) and ends with #9 Vanguard (17-4, 10-2 GSAC) when seniors will be honored prior to tipoff.
Through February 17th, Arizona Christian remains the highest-scoring team in the GSAC (75.1 PPG), ranks fifth in team field goal percentage (40.9) and ascends to tied for first in combined team rebounds per game (42.4). Alyssa Alvarez ups her average and retains second place in GSAC scoring (19.3 PPG), Emily Till's reinforces her rebounding total to hold second (10.8 RPG), Lauren Gunn sits at sixth in assists (3.0 APG) and Halle Payne keeps shooting at a good clip to stay fifth in field goal percentage (48.0).
Game Details
Arizona Christian vs. Hope International - Thursday, February 22 at 5:30 PM
Arizona Christian vs. #9 Vanguard - Saturday, February 24 at 12:00 PM
ACU Events Center - Glendale, AZ
*All Times Listed Are Arizona Time
Tickets - https://acufirestorm.com/sports/2022/11/29/973_133142257298652889.aspx
Prices- General Admission ($10), Alumni/Military/Senior ($5), ACU Students (Free), 12 and under (Free)
Live Coverage
Video - https://www.gsacsportsnetwork.com/azchristian
Live Stats - https://acufirestorm.com/sidearmstats/wbball/summary
Arizona Christian
Arizona Christian completed a series sweep of rival OUAZ on Saturday, overcoming their second-worst offensive output of the season (32.9 FGP) with active defense to win 72-59 on their home court. Besides winning the turnover battle by seven (19-12, OUAZ), the Lady Firestorm controlled the offensive glass with 14 boards compared to seven for the visiting Spirit.
Alyssa Alvarez cruised to her 14th game of the 2023-24 season with at least 20 points (27) and led all scorers (OUAZ's Angel Addleman was second with 19 points).
Emily Till was one point shy of a double-double, but gathered 12 rebounds to surpass the 10-rebound mark for the 14th time this year. Halle Payne, like much of this season, complemented Till with eight points and seven rebounds in her 28 minutes on the floor.
Graciela Roybal (4-of-11) was the Firestorm's second-highest scorer with 12 points and collected a season-high five rebounds.
ACU Key Players
Alyssa Alvarez - 19.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 2.2 APG
Lauren Gunn - 13.4 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 3.0 APG
Halle Payne - 12.2 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 1.5 APG
Graciela Roybal - 9.8 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 1.1 APG
Emily Till - 9.3 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 1.7 APG
Kayla Clark - 4.2 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.7 APG
Series Notes
A lopsided 83-71 loss on January 27th brought the Firestorm's record to 6-20 in their all-time series with the Hope International Royals. The Firestorm fell victim to a second quarter scoring burst (32-17) by the Royals and missed late opportunities to threaten further with the deficit down to 8… Alyssa Alvarez eclipsed the 30-point mark (32) for the third time this season and Halle Payne recorded her first double-double of the season (15 points, 13 rebounds). ACU will try to end a six-game losing streak in the series. They enter 4-8 at home against HIU.
ACU fell behind in the first quarter (24-8) in a 72-58 loss to the Vanguard University Lions on January 25th, bringing their all-time record to 4-18. With three post players absent, rebounding was an upward battle to say the least, especially against a recent NAIA Player of the Week, Melissa Akullu.
Alyssa Alvarez, who led the Firestorm with 17 points (6-for-14, 4-for-9 3PT), took home no small consolation prize, as she broke the program's all-time assist record with two assists (lifted to 301 at the time). On Saturday, the Firestorm hope to snap a three-game losing streak against the Lions. They are 2-8 at home in the series.
Coach Rusty Rogers' Thoughts
"Obviously, a big week for us," Coach Rogers said. "Two very formidable opponents that have qualified for the postseason. Major seeding implications—especially as we battle Hope for the fifth seed. We lost to both Hope and Vanguard a few weeks ago on the road so we look to avenge those games on our home court where we've been pretty good all season. Sending four-year players Alyssa Alvarez, Madison Kekic, and Tarissa Moore and two-year transfer Raegen Henry out in style with a victory on Saturday would be the icing on the cake!"
Hope International
The Hope International University Royals (13-9, 5-7 GSAC) have been riding quite the rollercoaster, winning four straight before losing their previous four GSAC games to find themselves sixth place in the conference. This past Saturday, the Royals fell 80-71 to The Master's at Darling Pavilion, their five-point lead heading into the fourth quarter vanishing as the Mustangs opened it on a 17-0 scoring run. Casey Fust led HIU with 20 points. The Royals average 72.1 PPG (sixth in GSAC), 9.9 three-pointers per game (first in GSAC) and 40.2 RPG (seventh in GSAC). Shiane Talley is the top scorer (17.5 PPG), rebounder (8.2 RPG) and leads in assists (5.2 APG).
#9 Vanguard
The Vanguard University Lions (17-4, 10-2 GSAC) have been victorious in their last four and eight of their last nine games to secure the ninth ranking in the latest NAIA Top-25 Coaches' Poll (February 14th). Notable contests in this stretch include an 81-73 overtime win over Hope International and a 72-60 win over #25 Menlo. The Lions most recently completed a season sweep of Life Pacific on Senior Day, dominating 74-48. Melissa Akullu led VU with 30 points, 13 rebounds and six blocks. Through February 17th, the Lions rank third in GSAC scoring (74.5 PPG), second in total defense (62.2 PAPG) and second in three-pointers per game (8.1). Akullu is the top scorer (24.6 PPG) and rebounder (14.0 RPG) and Halle Si'i leads in assists (5.2 APG), marks all first in the GSAC.
Roll Storm!
