FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (January 3, 2019) – Redshirt sophomore
Jacey Bailey and junior
Peyton Carroll came up huge for the Northern Arizona women's basketball team for the second straight game, powering the Lumberjacks to a 74-64 victory over Weber State on Thursday. Bailey (24) and Carroll (18) each posted career-best scoring efforts as NAU snapped its six-game losing streak and notched its first conference win in the process.
"We put Peyton in the starting lineup and she responded," said head coach
Loree Payne. "She came to play and scored, which was exactly what we needed her to bring. Jacey is settled in and played the way we knew she was capable of. She can do this every night. They were just two who contributed in a positive way tonight."
Bailey and Carroll both set season-best scoring outputs in NAU's last game on Monday, but the pair easily eclipsed those totals in the Walkup Skydome on Thursday. Bailey erupted for 24 points on 9-for-15 shooting, including a 4-for-6 performance behind the arc. She also added 10 rebounds in her first career double-double and a team-high three steals.
Carroll, making her first start since Jan. 25, 2018, posted 18 points on 8-for-16 shooting. NAU also received a third consecutive double-digit scoring game from sophomore
Lauren Orndoff, who netted 14 points. Orndoff hit three triples as Bailey and Orndoff combined for seven of NAU's eight three-pointers.
The Lumberjacks narrowly outshot the Wildcats, .371-.364, but drilled four more shots from three than Weber State. NAU shot 44.4 percent from three-point range – its second-highest three-point percentage of the season.
NAU led wire-to-wire in improving to 5-7 on the season overall. The Lumberjacks are 1-2 in conference play. A three-pointer by Orndoff opened the game's scoring and Carroll followed with a jumper on the Lumberjacks' next possession to jump out to a 5-0 lead and they never trailed.
Bailey and Carroll combined for NAU's first seven points of the second quarter allowing the 'Jacks to open up their first double-digit lead of the game, 23-10. NAU led by as much as 15, 35-20, with two minutes left in the first half before Weber State scored the final five points heading into the intermission.
A big part of NAU's 35-25 halftime advantage was the Lumberjacks' ability to take care of the ball. NAU committed just four turnovers in the first half, and a season-low tying 10 in the game, after turning it over 19 times in each of its last two games.
"I'm super pleased with just the 10 turnovers tonight," Payne said. "We wanted to be more fundamental. It was a great win for our team morale, but it doesn't surprise us. We know what we're capable of; we just haven't shown it yet."
For the second straight quarter, NAU raced out to a 7-0 run and snagged a 17-point advantage following two free throws by sophomore
Khiarica Rasheed at 42-25. The 17-point lead matched NAU's largest lead of the season going back to its season-opening win against Fresno State.
The Lumberjacks maintained a double-digit lead for all of two possessions throughout the third quarter and carried a 55-45 lead into the final period, where the Wildcats made a small push.
Weber State got as close as six, 61-55, with four minutes left in the game. The NAU lead was still seven with 2:45 on the clock, but Bailey hit a big triple to push the Lumberjack advantage back to double-digits at 68-58. Weber State never got closer than eight the rest of the way.
Bailey's 24 points – equaling the highest-scoring game by a Lumberjack this season – was a byproduct of NAU's impressive ball movement. Bailey was assisted on eight of her nine field goals made with the Lumberjacks tallying an impressive 20 assists on 26 baskets. Redshirt sophomore
Caitlin Malvar paced NAU with five helpers.
"As a team, we play our best when we play with flow instead of creating one-on-one," Bailey said. "We had people open for threes and we had easy layups."
NAU also set a new season-best with 47 rebounds as it outrebounded Weber State by one on the glass. Senior
Kaleigh Paplow hauled in a season-high tying 12 rebounds to give NAU two double-digit rebounders for the first time this season.
The Lumberjacks are right back in the Skydome on Saturday versus Idaho State at 2 p.m. The game will be Girl Scouts Day and there will be a free post game autograph session with the team.
