COSTA MESA -- Vanguard women's basketball might have allowed Arizona Christian back into the contest on Thursday night, but the Lions shored up their play as the second half moved along.  VU would distance themselves from the Firestorm in the third quarter to take the Golden State Athletic Conference game 72-58, bumping the Lions to 12-3 overall and 5-1 in the GSAC, dropping ACU to 13-7, 3-3.  Vanguard benefitted from four players scoring over 10 points, with Melissa Akullu leading all players with 18.
 
What Happened? The Blue and Gold got the opening tip and Sarah Matossian finished off the glass to put the squad ahead inside of 30 seconds.  The defense pressed the Firestorm after the bucket, forcing them to call a timeout just 35 seconds into the contest.  The Lions kept ACU from scoring and Jaryn Madsen would connect with her first triple of the night at the other end to run the lead out to 5-0.  The Firestorm would make a basket on their next possession, but that would be two of only eight points that ACU would tally in the first frame.  Vanguard's pressure and downhill play put Arizona Christian out of sorts, as the Lions would take a 24-8 lead over the first 10 minutes of play. Madsen had two threes in the first and led all players with eight points.  Akullu had six points and three rebounds, and the Lions forced six turnovers in the quarter. 
 
All that being said, the Firestorm were not close to being pinned and the visitors took flight in the second period, outscoring VU 20-12.  Arizona Christian closed out the half with an 11-3 stretch that closed the gap down to 36-28 at the intermission.  Vanguard went from shooting 52.9% from the floor in the first quarter to 26.7% in the second period,  Meanwhile, ACU connected at a game-high 47.1% and went 3-for-4 from downtown in the second to help chip away at the lead.
 
The opening three minutes of the third quarter also belonged to ACU, who deposited the first seven points of the half to bring the deficit down to just one point at 36-35.  Fortunately for the Lions, Halle Si'i made a nice jab move on the next possession to open up some shooting space from beyond the arc and she buried the shot.  The threes kept raining down over the next three minutes, as Airiana Madanski, Madsen, and then Si'i again splashed down from deep to cap an 11-4 run to put the Vanguard advantage at 50-39.  The two sides almost exchanged points equally as the period wound down, with the Lions taking a 59-46 lead into the final quarter.
 
Akullu cashed in the first basket of the fourth 91 seconds in, and she would score six of the first nine VU points over the opening four minutes of the frame.  Madanski added in another three with 7:39 to go to stretch the lead to 64-49, and ACU started to run out of steam.  The visitors would only make four field goals in the quarter, as the VU defense and ball handling proved effective in snubbing any comeback.  VU won the quarter 13-12 and took the win at the buzzer 72-58.
 
The Lions shot 37.5% from the floor in the game, 32.5% from downtown, and went 11-for-18 (61.1%) from the free-throw line.  ACU shot 40% from the field in the contest and 40.9% from deep, making 5-of-8 free throws (62.5%).  The Blue and Gold feasted on the glass, winning the rebound battle 47-29, including a 22-10 edge in offensive boards.  The Lions translated that into 18 points in the paint and held a 22-9 edge in second-chance points.
 
Akullu recorded another double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds in 29 minutes of action to lead all players in both categories.  Madsen was next in scoring with 17 points and she had a team-high four three-pointers in the ball game.  Both Madanski (5-of-8 from beyond the arc) and Si'i (3-of-5 from deep) each had 15 points, and both Si'i and Madsen each had three assists.  Matossian had four points, made three steals, and relentlessly pursued the ball all night long, hauling in 11 rebounds to end second on the squad in total boards.  Alexa Silva was the only other Lion to score, as she made one three-pointer in the game.
 
Why is it Important?  The Lions have now won three in a row over the Firestorm after losing two in a row in the 2021-2022 season.  VU has won by at least 14 points in the past three matchups with ACU.  The win also keeps the Lions in the hunt for first in the GSAC, as Menlo remains perfect in conference play.  Akullu has now had eight double-double games in a row and has 12 in the 15 games the squad has played in.
 
What was Said?  "I think we had some people step up and make some big shots for us like Halle, Airi, and Jaryn," said Head Coach Russ Davis.  "We had to overcome some bad foul trouble in the first half with Mel, Sarah, and Halle.  But Mel had a big second half and I thought we played most of the game with excellent energy." 

What's Next?  OUAZ will enter the OCC Gym on Saturday, January 27, for a noon tip.