SURPRISE, Ariz. – The OUAZ women's basketball team got a school record 36 points from
Bailey Osmer, but it wasn't enough to pull the upset of No. 21 Arizona Christian as the Spirit fell 93-82 on Saturday afternoon in Golden State Athletic Conference action.
OUAZ (4-4, 0-3 GSAC) led for most of the first three quarters after they used a 19-6 run between the first and second quarters to help them build a 45-36 lead at halftime. Arizona Christian (7-4, 2-1) opened the third quarter with a 16-4 run to help them regain the lead.
The Spirit scored six straight points to lead 67-66 with 30 seconds in the quarter when things turned for the visitors. A rebound layup from Jac Moody at the third quarter buzzer ignited a run of 18 straight points for the Firestorm that had their lead to 17 with 5:53 to play in the game. OUAZ wasn't able to get closer than nine the rest of the afternoon.
Osmer's 36 points are the most scored by a player in the GSAC this season and the second most in the NAIA. She finished the game shooting 14 of 17 from the floor while hitting four of her five attempts from beyond the arc. Osmer would also lead the Spirit with six rebounds and she had a pair of assists and one steal.
OUAZ ended the day shooting 40.8 percent from the field and with a season-high eight 3-pointers. They collected 17 offensive rebounds with 16 second chance points with 36 points in the paint. The Spirit totaled 16 assists and used 10 steals to help force 17 ACU turnovers.
Celeste Lira added 14 points while
Jorie Mayfield scored 11 for the Spirit.
Elizabeth Garcia led the team with six assists and
Alexis Smith had three steals.
The Firestorm finished the game shooting 48.5 percent from the field, including 52.7 percent in the second half. They had 23 second chance points and 22 points from 16 OUAZ turnovers.
Courtney Christmas scored 29 of her team-leading 34 points in the second half.
After playing three straight ranked teams to open GSAC play, OUAZ now has two non-conference games to close the month. The first is scheduled for November 17 when they host Lincoln Christian at Willow Canyon High School.
