WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

The No. 20 Huntington women’s basketball team leaned on two explosive runs to knock off Arizona Christian 62-51 Wednesday night at the ACU Events Center, extending its win streak to six and improving to 10-3 on the season.

Earlier in the day, Huntington made the jump from receiving votes into the 20th spot in the latest NAIA National Poll. The Foresters continue to back it up on the floor, with nine of their 10 wins now coming by double figures. Arizona Christian dropped its fourth straight contest to move to 3-8 on the year.

After a tight opening stretch, Huntington flipped the switch. With the score knotted at 7-7 midway through the first quarter, Allison Price jump-started a 13-0 run by scoring in transition. Annaka Nelson caught fire during the surge, drilling a pair of three-pointers as the Foresters ripped control away. The run pushed the margin to 20-7 before a late ACU bucket sent HU to the quarter break up 20-9.

The Firestorm answered in the second, trimming the gap to 36-27 by halftime, and continued to apply pressure in the third. The hosts cut the deficit to two midway through the quarter, but Huntington stayed composed and carried a 48-42 lead into the final 10 minutes.

That’s when the Foresters delivered the knockout. Huntington opened the fourth with a 14-0 burst, stretching the lead to a game-high 20 at 62-42. Price again set the tone with a layup before scoring once more in the paint. Liv Raby buried her second three of the night, Teegan Acres followed with her second triple, Addie Shank cleaned up a putback and Raby finished the run with a fastbreak layup. While HU wouldn’t score the rest of the night, the damage had already been done as they were able to cruise to victory.

Raby led Huntington with 16 points on an efficient 7-for-11 shooting night while knocking down her first two three-pointers of the season. She also posted five rebounds, three blocks and two assists. Nelson added 15 points, connecting on three shots from beyond the arc, while Shank posted a strong all-around effort with nine points, a game-high 12 rebounds, three assists three steals and a block. Price finished with nine points, three steals and a pair of assists.

Acres chipped in six points off the bench by hitting both of her three-point attempts, while Kyndra Sheets added three assists and two steals in 39 minutes of action.

Huntington’s defense set the tone all night. The Foresters held Arizona Christian to 29.6 percent shooting from the field and just 22.2 percent from three-point range, forcing 19 turnovers and limiting the Firestorm to nine points in the fourth quarter.

Arizona Christian was led by Emily Till, who finished with a game-high 20 points and nine rebounds. Cayci Muessig provided a spark off the bench with nine points, while Maggie Spencer and Charlotte O’Neal each added eight points.

Huntington will close out its Arizona swing Friday against Embry-Riddle before heading back to campus.