Career Highs by Maio, Schenck Lead Lumberjacks to 84-81 Victory

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (January 30, 2021) – Finishing with an unblemished performance from the field, Regan Schenck's career-high 27 points led the Lumberjacks to snapping a three-game skid.
 
Staked to a six-point lead entering the fourth quarter, NAU saw it trimmed to two in the closing minutes as Schenck put up 11 of her 27 in the final 10 minutes. While the Northern Colorado Bears hit 5-of-8 from the three-point line through the fourth, Schenck connected on four free throws in the final 31 seconds as the Lumberjacks held on for an 84-81 victory Saturday afternoon.
 
"We needed this one. The kids, they stayed the course. They knew we were just on the brink," said NAU head coach Loree Payne. "We really talked about togetherness, that we need to play with a little bit more chemistry. We just needed to play with a renewed desire, urgency and intensity. 
 
Schenck started early, scoring 11 in the first quarter, as the Lumberjacks began the day with one of their best opening stretches in the past few weeks. Hitting 50 percent from the field across the first 10 minutes, NAU built up 21-13 lead after Schenck put in a fastbreak layup.
 
"She'll never say she's a scorer, but when she scores we have a lot of success," Payne said. "We have been challenging her for three years to start looking at her shot. I feel like it's a little bit up and down this year, but she's definitely looking to score a little bit more and we need that to be successful."
 
The Bears cut the advantage back down to three a minute into the second, but a pair of jumpers and a three-pointer from Miki'ala Maio pushed the Lumberjacks back to their eight-point lead at 30-22.
 
Combining for just six field goals across the final five minutes of the second quarter, the Bears and Lumberjacks effectively matched one another heading into the break. 
 
Three-pointers by JJ Nakai and Schenck gave NAU a nine-point lead, its biggest of the day, with Alexis Chapman and Jasmine Gayles coming up with threes of their own to trim their deficit right back down to where it stood for much of the day.
 
Led by Schenck, who added a team-best 12 rebounds and six assists, and Maio, who carved up Northern Colorado's defense as well with 24 points, NAU looked to strike in transition whenever the opportunity presented itself.
 
"We were able to get all five people on the floor running which I think helped everybody," Schenck said. "It helped open up cuts, it opened up passes out. I just think it was a team effort in transition that we finally got back to doing what we were at the beginning of the season."
 
Schenck connected on all eight of her shots from the field, including a 3-for-3 day from behind the arc. Maio nearly matched the effort, hitting 11-of-13 from the field as she constantly found space in the paint and through her mid-range game.
 
"We were rebounding, we were running the floor, we were playing off of each other," Schenck said. "That's what we needed and hopefully we can just keep it going."
 
Northern Colorado never regained the lead after opening the game on a small 4-0 run, but tied the game twice midway through the third. Maio answered the second tie, at 51-51 with 4:03 left, as she slipped along the baseline for a basket off an assist from Schenck.
 
Converting the ensuing free throw after drawing a foul on the make, Maio retook a lead the Lumberjacks would never relinquish. 
 
Nakai answered a three by Hannah Simental with one of her own, and Maio answered Simental's ensuing layup as she split the defense through the paint for a layup to put the Lumberjacks ahead by five once again.
 
Stops on the defensive end, in part thanks to Jacey Bailey's defense on Alisha Davis in the paint, eventually sent Schenck to the free-throw line to close out the victory.
 
Bailey finished with 10 points, four rebounds and three steals, while Emily Rodabaugh added 11 points, seven rebounds, two blocks and two steals as the two joined Schenck and Maio in double-digits. 
 
Davis was limited to 11 points and six rebounds for the Bears after recording 21 and 14 on Thursday. Gayles finished with 20 points again, while a 13-point fourth quarter pushed Simental up to 15 points total. 
 
Improving to 7-9 overall and 5-7 in the Big Sky Conference, the Lumberjacks will remain at home next week as they face the Sacramento State Hornets (1-12, 1-9 Big Sky) next week in Flagstaff. Falling back down to .500 in conference play, the Bears (7-10, 6-6) are scheduled to face Southern Utah next week in Greeley.