FAIRBANKS, Alaska — On Thanksgiving Day, the Southern Nazarene Women's Basketball team celebrated all that they were thankful for as they spent the holiday in a fun-filled trek to Alaska. There was one celebration they were unable to experience as they faced their first loss (79-62) of the season suiting up for the first time in the Alaska Tournament.
The Storm (4-1, 0-0 GAC) scrambled in the paint as they allowed the Timberwolves (4-0) 25 second chance points off of 17 offensive rebounds while battling foul trouble the entire contest. Northwood gained an advantage as they outscored the Storm 36-26 from inside the lane lines putting them up in the field goal category just enough to award them the victory.
The Timberwolves claimed a lead midway through the first and left the Storm to creep behind the rest of the way. At the end of the first 10 minutes, it was only a six point deficit as SNU trailed 12-18. When the second quarter rolled around, the Storm went on a run 7-0 run to head atop the Timberwolves. After a few exchanges between the two, Northwood went into the half with a 40-32 lead over the Storm.
The story remained the same as the next 20 minutes commenced. The Timberwolves still claimed a slight lead as the SNU fought to bridge the gap. SNU aimed for the come up as two three's by Jaycee Soap and Belle Frazier along with a pair of free throw's sunk in by Emily Monaghan would cut the Timberwolves' lead to 12. Adding to the climb, Lillie Smith drained one from behind the ark as the buzzer sounded making it a nine point game at the end of the third.
Fouls would trouble the Storm in the final 10 and a couple of three's put in by Northwood would grow the gap even further. Monaghan was giving the Storm some light as she hit a few jumpers to help keep Northwood within reach. Her surge wasn't enough to bring SNU back within single digits and the Timberwolves would hand the Storm their first defeat after a successful 4-0 run earlier in the season.
Monaghan was the only Storm member to hit double figures in scoring as she tallied 10 points, two rebounds, three assists, and one steal that afternoon.
Belle Frazier came in strong off the bench in her debut with the Storm as she registered eight points and two rebounds. Cassandra Awatt also helped on the offensive side as she brought in eight points and two rebounds.
Point guard Alexus Jones added to the Storm's fight with her seven points, two rebounds, and two steals. Teammate Jaycee Soap also contributed to the climb with her seven points, three rebounds, two assists, and one steal.
Kennedy Gillette was a force on the defensive end as she grabbed five steals and three rebounds while adding four assists.
Early foul trouble kept Abby Niehues out of the game as she only put up six points and two blocks. Lauryn Reither contributed with her seven points, one rebound, and one assist.
SNU will suit up for Game 2 of the Alaska series Friday, November 26th against No. 20 Tampa University. Tip-off is set for 1:00 PM AKDT (4:00 PM CST).
