Young, Gallegos Lead UCI to 76-74 Win at NAU

Tuesday, November 10

Flagstaff, Ariz.

5:00 PM PT

UC Irvine

1-1,0-0Big West

Northern Arizona

0-2,0-0Big Sky

Team	1	2	3	4	F
UC Irvine	14	23	21	18	76
Northern Ariz.	17	15	24	18	74

Box Score (PDF)

Gracie Gallegos drives by a defender in UC Irvine women's basketball's game at NAU.

Photo by Kyleigh Thurmond, NAU Athletics

November 10, 2026 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - Ahrray Young had a career-high 23 points and Gracie Gallegos had a double-double to lead UC Irvine to a 76-74 victory over Northern Arizona Tuesday evening at Rolle Activity Center.

Young's final two points gave the Anteaters (1-1) their first win of the season. With the score knotted at 74-all, Young drove to the basket and drew the foul with 7.8 seconds on the clock. She calmly knocked down both free throws, and UCI got the stop on the other end to win a back-and-forth affair that saw 10 ties and 10 lead changes.

Young went 8-for-15 from the field, 3-for-4 from beyond the arc, and 4-of-5 at the charity stripe. She added six rebounds and two assists. Gallegos totaled 17 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Sophomore Nohe'alani Stores also had a productive 18 minutes on the court, finishing with 14 points (5-8 FG) and five boards. Stores came up big down the stretch with a putback giving the visitors a 74-72 lead.

As a team, the 'Eaters shot 42.9% and dominated the paint where they held a 34-14 advantage. They also won the rebounding battle, 39-37.

NAU (0-2) shot 37% overall, but went 12-for-26 from deep (46.2%) and 22-of-28 at the foul line. The Lumberjacks made seven more threes and five more free throws than the Anteaters. Aaliyah Smith paced Northern Arizona with 19 points and six assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED: Gallegos scored six points in the first three minutes to lift UC Irvine to an early 6-2 lead. Northern Arizona then scored five unanswered to go up by one. The Anteaters went back on top on their next possession thanks to a Makiah Asidanya 3-pointer. The Lumberjacks responded by outscoring UCI, 9-3, down the stretch to pull ahead, 17-14.

NAU went up by six early in the second period before the 'Eaters used a 12-0 rally to flip the score, taking a 31-25 lead at the 3:01 mark. Northern Arizona cut the deficit in half, but Shirel Nahum made a couple free throws in the final second to give UC Irvine a 37-32 cushion at the half.

The Anteaters started the third frame with buckets from Young and Gallegos for the largest lead of the night at 42-32. NAU then went on a 13-1 run for a two-point edge. Young ended the Lumberjack rally, and Asidanya followed with a layup to put the 'Eaters on top, 47-45, with 3:18 remaining. UCI increased its margin to five on a Summah Hanson putback, but Northern Arizona knocked down another three at the buzzer to close to within two at 58-56.

The seesaw battle continued with six ties in the final frame. NAU broke a 64-64 deadlock with its 12th triple of the night. UC Irvine kept it close and used a 5-0 spurt to reclaim the edge at 71-69 with 2:21 left. The Lumberjacks tied it up three more times, but the 'Eaters would not relinquish the lead. After Northern Arizona knotted it up at 74-74 with 24 seconds to go, UCI called a timeout to draw up the final play. With time winding down, Young drove into the paint, drew the foul, and sank both free throws. The Lumberjacks had one more chance with seven ticks on the clock, but the Anteaters got the stop they needed for the 76-74 win.

UP NEXT: UC Irvine closes out its season-opening three-game road stretch at Eastern Washington on Sunday, Nov. 15.

NOTES
• Ahrray Young had her third career 20-point game and first as an Anteater.
• Gracie Gallegos had UCI's second double-double in as many games.
• Gallegos eclipsed 500 career points in her third season (missed last year with an injury).
• UC Irvine now leads in its all-time series with NAU, 4-3.
• The two-point win was the smallest margin of victory in the seven games between the teams.