| Northern Arizona Women's Basketball |
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Nov. 2, 2024) – Picked as favorites in the Big Sky Conference preseason polls with a preseason Mid-Major ranking to match, the Northern Arizona women's basketball team is preparing to open its season with a pair of matinees against Mountain West Conference opponents.
The Lumberjacks open 2024-25 at New Mexico on Monday, Nov. 4 at 11 a.m. Mountain Standard time in Albuquerque, N.M., at The Pit before taking on UNLV in Las Vegas, Nev., on Thursday, Nov. 7. Tipoff against the Lady Rebels is set for 12 p.m. MST.
The 2023-24 Northern Arizona women's basketball squad put together one of the best seasons in program history. The Lumberjacks set a single-season win record with 25 victories and matched their best-ever Big Sky record at 15-3, finishing second in the league standings. Northern Arizona advanced to its third-straight championship game and earned a WNIT berth for the second-straight season, earning a first-round bye. NAU boasted a unanimous first-team All-Big Sky selection in
Sophie Glancey who led the league in scoring and field goal percentage, earning Player of the Week honors three times.
Leia Beattie was named to the second team, and both
Emily Rodabaugh and
Olivia Moran were recognized with honorable mention nods.
Behind head coach
Loree Payne, who is now the program's all-time leader in conference victories and ranks second overall, the Lumberjacks led the league in scoring with over 75 points per game. Additionally, NAU was ranked in the mid-major poll for the first time in program history and three different players collected five Big Sky Player of the Week awards.
As a team, Northern Arizona set program records in points scored (2,636), free throw percentage (78.2%), field goals made (961) and total assists (559). It grabbed the second-most amount of rebounds with 1,370 and in three-pointers made with 270.
The 2024-25 squad returns three starters and 11 total players. The Lumberjacks only lost
Grace Beasley and Rodabaugh to graduation and did not lose any players to the transfer portal. During the offseason, NAU welcomed true freshman
Faith Curry and CSUN transfer,
Talo Li-Uperesa. Payne will enter her eighth season at the helm just nine wins away from becoming NAU's all-time leader in career wins.
Prior to the start of the season, Glancey was named Preseason Big Sky MVP and Beattie was also named to the All-Conference team. It is also the first time Northern Arizona has been picked first in both polls, as it was selected first by the media and second by the coaches last season. In the polls, the Lumberjacks received seven first place votes and 79 overall by the coaches, who cannot vote for their own teams. Montana State received three first place votes and 73 overall and were followed by Montana with 66 votes.
In the media poll, NAU had 16 first place votes and 246 total to edge the Bobcats who had five first place votes and 227 total points. The Griz were picked third by the media as well with three first place votes and 217 points. Eastern Washington, the defending Big Sky regular season and tournament champions, earned a first-place vote by the media but were selected to finish seventh.
Last season as a sophomore, Glancey earned unanimous first team All-Big Sky honors and was named to the Big Sky All-Tournament team along with winning three Big Sky Player of the Week awards. She started and played in all 35 games and averaged 15.7 points per contest, scoring 550 total points which ranks second in single-season history at NAU. Glancey led the Big Sky in field goal percentage, draining 53.4 percent (221-414) from the field which ranks eighth in single-season season history.
The Boise, Idaho, native scored in double figures 28 times, scoring over 20 points in 11 games and tying her career-high 30 points on three different occasions. Outside of the scoring column, Glancey led the team with 7.3 rebounds per game and her 257 total boards is third in NAU single-season history. She had six double-doubles on the year, three of which came consecutively.
Beattie is entering her second season at Northern Arizona after transferring in from Montana State where she was named the league's Top-Reserve and earned honorable mention honors after the 2022-23 season. Her first year as a Lumberjack saw her be named to the All-Big Sky second team and earn a spot on the Big Sky All-Tournament team.
The Midland, Texas, native played in all 35 games with 34 starts a season ago. She scored in double figures 22 times, scoring 415 total points to average 11.9 per game. Beattie led the 'Jacks with 79 three-pointers made, a mark that ranks second in NAU single-season history. Her percentage (41.6, 79-190) is tied for fourth while her attempts rank seventh. She made at least three triples in 14 games including a career-best six in a win at Sacramento State.
New Mexico was picked to finish sixth in the Mountain West Preseason Poll. The Lobos were predicted to finish sixth the year prior as well but finished second in the standings at the end of the year with a 21-11 overall record and a 12-6 mark in MWC action. UNM has won at least 20 games in three consecutive seasons.
Viané Cumber was named Preseason All-Mountain West after starting all 29 games and averaging 11.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in 2024-25. Cumber also made 70 three-pointers and added 39 assists.
The Lobos bring in 10 newcomers to join four returners from a season ago. Of the 10 newcomers, six are upperclassmen and nine players listed on the 2024-25 roster have collegiate experience.
Monday will mark the first meeting between the two foes since the first round of the WNIT in 2022-23. The Lumberjacks, in their first-ever WNIT appearance, traveled to Albuquerque and lost in a close battle, 72-64. In the loss,
Olivia Moran scored 15 points while
Nyah Moran finished with nine points, five assists and four steals.
NAU will be looking for its first victory at The Pit since the 1994-95 season and the first win over the Lobos since 1995-96. Northern Arizona trails the all-time series, 6-23 and have lost nine-straight to the Lobos.
Just like Northern Arizona, UNLV was also picked to finish first in its preseason poll. The Lady Rebels collected 21 of 30 available first-place votes and they look to defend their title for the fourth-straight season after being predicted to finish first for the third-straight year.
UNLV placed three on its Preseason All-MW Team in Alyssa Brown, Kiara Jackson and Amarachi Kimpson. Jackson led the nation in assist/turnover ratio at 3.49 last season. Kimpson was named the Mountain West's Sixth Player and Freshman of the Year in 2023-24, and Brown was named the Mountain West's Tournament MVP.
The Lady Rebels finished 30-3 overall last year and 17-1 in MWC play. UNLV advanced to the first round of the NCAA Tournament last year, falling to No. 7 Creighton. UNLV – who is receiving votes in major preseason polls - opens the season by hosting LMU on Nov. 4 before taking on the Lumberjacks.
Northern Arizona and UNLV have become quite familiar with each other, as Thursday will mark the fifth-straight season the Lumberjacks and Rebels have faced off. Although Northern Arizona is 4-16 in the all-time series, it has won two out of the last four matchups.
NAU won 79-75 on Nov. 25, 2020, in Las Vegas and then again at the Rolle Activity Center on Nov. 17, 2021, by a score of 84-62. Northern has since lost two straight, including a hard-fought 85-69 loss last season in Flagstaff. The first quarter was a shootout, with UNLV leading 30-28 after the first 10 minutes. At the half, NAU trailed 51-43. Northern Arizona fell behind by 17 points before an 11-0 run in the third quarter boosted the Lumberjacks to cut the deficit to two points in the fourth, but the Rebels used a 14-0 run to close the game to seal the victory. Three of the four NAU players who scored in double figures in the matchup return in
Leia Beattie (13 pts),
Taylor Feldman (11 pts) and
Sophie Glancey (11 pts).
Saniyah Neverson added 10 rebounds, four blocks and six points in the loss.
Following the road swing, NAU returns home to host Fort Lewis at the Rolle Activity Center for its home opener on Nov. 11. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. MST.
