FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (February 25, 2023) – With a chance to still secure a share of the Big Sky Conference regular season title, the Northern Arizona University women's basketball team left it all out on the floor today in a 66-48 victory over Northern Colorado on Senior Day. Prior to the game, NAU honored
Regan Schenck,
Montana Oltrogge, and
Sanjana Ramesh before their final game at Findlay Toyota Court.
NAU topped Northern Colorado for the fourth-straight time and earned the season sweep over the Bears, improving to 18-12 overall and 12-5 in Big Sky play for their third-straight victory. UNC drops to 11-17 and 4-13.
Four players scored in double figures, led by
Nyah Moran with 16 points. Both
Olivia Moran and
Saniyah Neverson scored 12 points, and
Regan Schenck added 10 points and nine assists.
"I'm really proud of the team. It was an emotional day with it being senior day and it was an important game for seeding purposes. We were able to keep everything in check and it was awesome to be able to honor our seniors and celebrate them and send them out with a big victory," said head coach
Loree Payne. "I'm proud of the team and how we showed up and executed."
Northern Colorado jumped out to a 7-0 lead that extended to 10-6. From there, a 5-0 run gave the Lumberjacks their first lead of the game after a
Nyah Moran triple and NAU never looked back, leading for the final 33:55. At the end of the first quarter, the Lumberjacks led 16-12 after shooting 42.9 percent from the field with three triples.
The second quarter was closely contested, with NAU owning a slight 14-13 edge. After the Lumberjacks extended the lead out to seven points with a Neverson layup, the Bears got within a point following a 6-0 run. The 'Jacks responded, closing the quarter with four-straight points to take a 30-25 lead into the locker room.
Northern Arizona locked down defensively in the third quarter, outscoring the Bears 20-8. The Lumberjacks shot 43.8 percent from the field and held the Bears to just one field goal as they shot 16.7 percent during the frame. NAU kept Northern Colorado completely off of the scoreboard until the 4:32 mark, building a 15-point lead by that point. The Bears' lone field goal did not come until the 3:14 mark and Northern Arizona used a 15-0 run to lead 50-33 heading into the final quarter.
The Lumberjacks opened the fourth quarter on a 9-0 run, once again holding the Bears without a field goal under three minutes remained. NAU was 7-for-17 from the field in the fourth quarter, leading by as many as 25 points, while Northern Colorado made just 4-of-16.
The Bears were perfect from the free throw line in the game, making all 15 attempts. They were 15-for-48 from the field and 3-for-11 from three-point range. The Lumberjacks forced 16 turnovers, turning the miscues into 18 points. NAU also won the rebounding battle 42-to-31, and in the paint, 28-to-24. The bench added 22 points and the Lumberjacks also scored 19 fastbreak points.
Northern Arizona made nine three-pointers and shot 39.3 percent from the field overall (24-61).
The Lumberjacks hit the road for their final regular season game, playing at Weber State on Monday, Feb. 27, at 6 p.m. Mountain Standard time in Ogden, Utah. It's then on to the Big Sky Championships in Boise, Idaho, on March 4-8 with an opponent and time still to be determined.
