FRESNO (Interstat) — Mekhia Chase scored 19 points and Fresno State used a dominant first-quarter run to beat visiting UC Merced 94-32 in a non-divisional women’s NCAA Division I basketball game on Wednesday at Save Mart Center. The announced attendance was 1,130. Fresno State improved to 1-0.

Chase, a 5-foot-7 guard from California, Md., who previously attended Saint Marys Ryken High School, finished with four rebounds, three assists and one block in 25 minutes. She was Fresno State’s top scorer and helped the Bulldogs, now 1-0, take control early. Rubi Gray added 18 points, five rebounds and two assists in 19 minutes.

The Bulldogs trailed briefly after Nicole Lukito made a 3-pointer to give UC Merced a 5-2 lead with 7:30 left in the first quarter. Fresno State answered with a 34-9 run to close the period. Zawadi Ogot opened the scoring with a layup, Olivia Smith tied the game for UC Merced with a jump shot, and Lukito gave the visitors their only lead. Gray then hit two 3-pointers, Kyla Palpallatoc made two free throws for UC Merced, and Ogot made two free throws and a driving layup. Chase made a driving layup, Jazzy Beltran hit a 3-pointer for UC Merced, and Ava Marr answered with a 3-pointer. Ashlyn Rean scored twice inside, Marr made another 3-pointer and a layup, Gray added a layup, Ogot made another layup, Chase made a layup and a free throw, Stevie Lundquist made a jump shot for UC Merced, and Chase capped the quarter with a 3-pointer at the buzzer to make it 36-14.

Fresno State kept pulling away in the second quarter. Rean opened the scoring with a layup, Lola Donez hit a 3-pointer, Chase made a layup and Ogot added a turnaround jump shot. After Chloe Yan hit a 3-pointer for UC Merced, Jada Hunter made a driving layup, Rean scored twice more inside, Gray made a 3-pointer and a layup, and Fresno State took a 56-17 lead into halftime. The Bulldogs’ defense limited UC Merced to a single 3-pointer in the second quarter while Fresno State’s offense continued to find open looks.

The Bulldogs opened the third quarter with consecutive baskets from Ogot, Donez and Chase. UC Merced got free throws from Olivia Gill and Olivia Smith, but Fresno State extended its lead to 79-24 after three quarters. Gray made a layup and a 3-pointer, Hunter made two layups, Donez added two free throws, and Ogot closed the period with a layup. UC Merced’s Nicole Lukito made a jump shot and Olivia Gill made four free throws in the quarter, but the Bulldogs’ lead remained comfortable. Chase made two layups in the period and continued to pace Fresno State. Fresno State’s largest lead reached 55 points at the end of the third quarter.

Fresno State emptied its bench in the fourth quarter. Rean made a free throw, Marr made a jump shot and a 3-pointer, Donez made a pullup jump shot, Sienna Clark made a 3-pointer, and Chase made a 3-pointer. UC Merced got a layup from Jazzy Beltran, a free throw from Nicole Lukito, a jump shot and four free throws from Olivia Gill. Fresno State finished with a 94-32 victory. The Bulldogs’ reserves saw extended minutes, and Ella Barmentloo, Clark and Ryleigh Schoonover all contributed to the final margin. Marr’s 3-pointer at 1:36 gave Fresno State a 65-point lead before UC Merced scored the final three points.

Gray, a 5-foot-10 guard who previously attended St. Brendan Shaw College, finished with 18 points, five rebounds and two assists in 19 minutes. Rean, a 6-foot-2 forward from Rangiora, had 11 points, 15 rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 23 minutes. Hunter, a 5-foot-10 guard who previously attended Christian Brothers HS, added six points, four rebounds and six assists in 25 minutes. Marr, a 5-foot-10 guard from Archbishop Murphy High School, scored 13 points with four rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes. Ogot, a 5-foot-11 guard from Santiago High School, had 14 points, one assist and one block in 23 minutes. Donez, a 5-foot-11 guard from Lahainaluna HS, added nine points and three rebounds in 19 minutes. Barmentloo, a 6-foot-3 forward from St. Mary’s Anglican Girls School, had two points and two rebounds in two minutes. Clark, a 5-foot-9 guard from Rouse Hill High School, scored three points in six minutes, and Schoonover, a 6-foot forward from Clovis West High School, grabbed three rebounds in seven minutes.

UC Merced got a jump shot and two free throws from Olivia Smith, while Olivia Gill made six free throws and a late jump shot. Lukito hit a 3-pointer and a jump shot, Jazzy Beltran made a 3-pointer and a layup, Kyla Palpallatoc made two free throws, and Stevie Lundquist added a jump shot. Fresno State finished with 30 assists, 21 offensive rebounds, five blocks and nine turnovers while scoring 94 points on 79 possessions for an offensive rating of 118.6. The Bulldogs’ 30 assists came on a night when they consistently moved the ball against UC Merced’s defense.

No point spread, betting line, over-under, game simulator or projection information was provided. Fresno State’s next 10 games, in order, are at Colorado, home against New Mexico, home against Northern Arizona, at Florida Gulf Coast, at Louisiana-Monroe in New Orleans, at Texas-Arlington in Avondale, La., at San Diego, home against Saint Mary’s, home against Southern Mississippi and home against Grambling.