FARMINGTON, Utah (November 11, 2020) – For the first time in more than a decade, the Northern Arizona women's basketball team was picked to finish in the top half of the Big Sky Conference in the Preseason Coaches and Media Polls released by the conference office on Wednesday.
Finishing in a tie for fourth a year ago with a 12-8 record, the NAU women recorded their best run through the conference since the 1997-98 season when the program went 15-1. With 80 points and three first-place votes, the Lumberjacks landed third in this year's Media Poll while 180 points in the Coaches' Poll also placed NAU third. The Lumberjacks had not been selected higher than eighth in any preseason poll since 2011.
Six letterwinners return for head coach
Loree Payne's fourth year with NAU, including the Big Sky Conference Preseason MVP
Khiarica Rasheed. Two other Lumberjacks,
Jacey Bailey and
Nina Radford, earned honors from the Big Sky season as well. While Rasheed was named to the first team, Bailey landed on the second team and Radford earned Newcomer of the Year from the Big Sky.
Rasheed averaged 16.5 points and 7.2 rebounds while shooting 48.9% from the field last season. All three totals ranked among the conference's top six, with her field goal percentage landing second in the Big Sky while attempting more shots than anyone else in the top six.
Entering the year at 1,130 career points, Rasheed is just 320 points behind third place and has scored more than that total in each of her past two seasons. Rasheed also ranks 10th in field goals made (401) and fourth in free-throws made (306), with the latter total just 120 off of Mindy Sherred's record set in 1987.
Bailey's 14.0 points (4th) and Radford's 12.2 points (t-14th) gives the Lumberjacks three of the Big Sky's best scorers while Bailey also ranked 10th in rebounding (6.5 per game) and Radford landed in a tie for 13th with 3.1 assists per game.
While no team earned the Big Sky Conference Tournament championship due to the cancellation of the finals in March, the four semifinalists earned the top four spots in each poll.
Idaho and Idaho State tied at 91 points in the Coaches' Poll, though the former earned four first-place votes to the latter's two. NAU slipped in just ahead of Montana State in the Coaches' Poll, with 80 points to 77.
Similarly, Idaho led the Media Poll with 221 points and 16 of 21 first-place votes. Idaho State followed at 206 points and two first-place votes, while NAU landed third at 180 despite not earning a first-place vote. Montana State's 173 points and two first-place votes placed the Bobcats fourth again.
Northern Colorado finished fifth in each poll, earned one first-place vote in each of them. Montana and Portland State each placed sixth and seventh in the two polls, with the Lady Griz sixth in the Coaches' Poll and the Vikings sixth for the Media.
Southern Utah was the consensus eighth-place team in each poll, with Sacramento State and Eastern Washington trading ninth and 10th. The Hornets finished ninth in the Coaches Poll and 10th for the Media while the Eagles landed in the opposite spots. Weber State rounded out the polls in 11th.
