Air Force Falls to No. 20 Arizona State in Season Opener, 87-56

TEMPE, Ariz. - Air Force fell to No. 20/18 Arizona State in the 2019-2020 season opener, 87-56, Tuesday evening in Desert Financial Arena. The Falcons were led by freshman guard Kamri Heath who scored a game-high 16 points in her collegiate debut.

Heath, who didn't miss a field goal in the first 18:30 of the game, along with freshmen teammates Allyah Marlett and Grace Hess combined for 29 points on their opening night. Marlett dropped eight points and collected eight rebounds while Hess recorded five points. Sophomore team captain and last season's rebounds leader, Emily Conroe, scored 12 points while bringing in eight rebounds, five of which were on the offensive side of the ball.

Kaelin Immel, Air Force's leading scorer for two-straight seasons, recorded a team-high three assists with four points and five rebounds in just under 30 minutes spent on the floor. The Falcons' sophomores Riley Snyder and Haley Jones combined for 11 points, six and five, respectively. Jones added five defensive rebounds to her final tally.

The Falcons started off hot, scoring back-and-forth with the top-20 Sun Devils up until the final four minutes of quarter where ASU pulled away on an 11-0 scoring run to end the first quarter with a 22-11 lead.

Air Force played their best ball in the second quarter, scoring 18 points while shooting 40-percent from the field, 62.5-percent from the free throw line and draining one-of-one long ball attempts with only two turnovers committed. Heath dropped a game-high 10 points in the second quarter.

The Falcons lost some steam in the third quarter as they tried to get the three-ball going, only managing to hit one-of-five attempts from deep. Contrarily, Arizona State picked up the pace, shooting 73-percent from the field to build a 22-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Air Force's shooting percentages continued to dive in the final quarter of action as the team shot 36-percent from the field (5-17), missing all four three-point attempts. The Falcons combined for just 11 points in the fourth quarter while ASU tallied 20 by the final horn, defeating Air Force by 31 points.

Arizona State had four players with double-figure scoring marks led by Jamie Ruden with 14. The Sun Devils narrowly out-rebounded Air Force, 42-36, however the Falcons collected four more offensive boards than the noticeably taller ASU (17-13).

Next up, Air Force opens the home slate against NJIT on Friday (Nov. 8) at 11 a.m., in Clune Arena. The game serves as Field Trip Day for youngsters in the local neighboring school districts.

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