FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (December 1, 2020) – Following a pair of non-conference games to open the season, the Northern Arizona University women's basketball team begins its 20-game Big Sky Conference schedule with a trip to Cheney, Wash.
Facing off with the Eastern Washington Eagles for a pair of games, the weekend is tentatively set to begin on Saturday, Dec. 5. The second game of the weekend will follow on Sunday, Dec. 6, with the contest shifted back from its original date of Thursday, Dec. 3 to accommodate testing within both programs and ensure the safety of all student-athletes and staff. Tip times will be announced later this week.
While the Lumberjacks sit at 1-1 following a victory at UNLV and a loss in Tucson to No. 7 Arizona, the Eagles have yet to play this season. A game against No. 17 Oregon State was canceled while a meeting with Washington State was moved back to Dec. 22. As a result, NAU will be facing a team playing its season opener for the third consecutive game.
"That's part of the challenging dynamics with this year," said NAU head coach
Loree Payne. "Obviously we would have loved to have been able to watch them play a game, but especially with our team right now, it's really about us executing our offensive and defensive system. I feel like we are making huge strides on both ends of the court."
Facing off with a top 10 program to wrap up their first week of play, the Lumberjacks battled early on against the Wildcats this past Sunday. After pulling ahead 13-8 during the opening quarter, NAU trailed by just six heading into the halftime break.
Scoring eight points in the opening quarter, sophomore
Emily Rodabaugh finished with 14 points and eight rebounds. Coupled with her career-high 27 points against UNLV, Rodabaugh became the fourth Lumberjack to win the Big Sky Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Week on Monday. Averaging 20.5 points and 7.5 rebounds, Rodabaugh was the only player in the conference to rank among the top eight in each statistical category.
Meanwhile, senior
JJ Nakai continued an impressive start to her Lumberjack career in her return to Tucson. Playing in the city where she spent two years with Pima Community College, Nakai scored 17 points and grabbed four rebounds. Additionally, senior
Miki'ala Maio made her Lumberjack debut against Arizona, scoring eight points, after being declared eligible for the 2020-21 season.
"I appreciate they have got a couple games under their belt as Lumberjacks, especially against two really tough opponents," Payne said. "It definitely was a challenge, and the collective level of athleticism that we have seen in our last couple games is not necessarily indicative of what we are going to see night in and night out in the Big Sky. For us to go against opponents that were faster, stronger, bigger and more athletic was really a good test for us to kind of see where we are at as a team."
Eastern Washington was picked to finish ninth by the media and 10th by the coaches in the Big Sky Women's Preseason Polls following a 4-26 record a year ago. NAU swept the season series against Eastern Washington for the first time since the 2012-13 season last year, with a 70-62 victory in Cheney followed by a 63-58 win in Flagstaff.
Junior Grace Kirscher is the team's leading returner in scoring 10.7 after shooting 36.4 percent from the field last season. Sophomores Jenna Dick and Kennedy Dickie added 9.6 and 9.5 points per game respectively, with Dickie also adding 5.0 rebounds per game.
In addition to the Pluto TV broadcast, live stats of Sunday's game will be available
here.
