MESA, Ariz. --- The Park University Gilbert beach volleyball team (3-5, 1-5) lost to the Arizona Christian University Firestorm (5-4, 3-3) by a score of 4-1, Friday morning at Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Ariz.

The Buccaneers put up a valiant fight against a Firestorm team that ranked No. 5 in the latest NAIA Top 10.

 Park-Gilbert's No. 3 pair of Aliyah Unseth and Keep Williams swept Arizona Christian's 3s. Additionally, the Bucs' No. 2 pair of Elise Langley and Lizzy Moyer pushed ACU's 2s to three sets. Langley and Moyer had an eight-point lead in the second set before securing a 21-15 win.

Final Scores:

1.       Emily Casner and Emee Fellens (ACU) def. Porsche Bauer and Adriana DeMario (PARK) 21-11, 21-8

2.        Jaiden Zeis and Jasmin Joseph (ACU) def. Elise Langley and Lizzy Moyer (PARK) 21-13, 15-21, 17-15

3.       Aliya Unseth and Keep Williams (PARK) def. Abby Siebert and Haley Tedrow (ACU) 21-19, 21-19

4.       Alyssa Robles and Abigail Nelson (ACU) def. Kyla Knight and Hayven Lick (PARK) 21-12, 21-11

5.       Laila Adcock and Jaclyn Stone (ACU) def. Athena Hice and Marissa Moorehouse (PARK) 21-11, 21-13

The Bucs return to the court next Thursday, March 5 at 5 p.m. MST, when they face off against the Stephen F. Austin University Lumberjacks (1-1) at the Sun Devil Beach Volleyball Facility in Tempe, Ariz. This will be the first of two matches against a Division I program this season, as Park-Gilbert will host the University of Nebraska next Sunday on March 8.