BETHANY, Okla. — Southern Nazarene improved to 6-0 in conference Saturday afternoon after fending off Henderson State 63-47 inside the Sawyer Center.
Holding the Reddies (6-6,3 3-3 GAC) to just 26% shooting and out-rebounding them by 19, the Storm (9-3, 6-0 GAC) tacked on another victory to their season, making it eight consecutive wins overall. SNU was highlighted by the performances of Emily Monaghan and Hannah Giddey who combined for 38 points and 25 rebounds against the Reddies.
The Storm took advantage of the driving lanes from opening tip, getting Henderson's leading scorer Ashley Farrar in foul trouble early. Offense was on the quieter side for both sides, nearly missing the double digit scoring marker towards the end of the quarter. The Reddies got off a last second shot just before the buzzer sounded, taking the 12-11 lead over SNU after the first.
SNU increased the pace in quarter two, showing off their fiesty defense that troubled the Reddies. Reclaiming the lead early, SNU never looked back, outscoring the Reddies 16-11 to finish ahead 27-23 at the half.
After the break, SNU opened with a 12-0 run before two Storm fouls sent the Reddies to the free throw line for four quick points. SNU took control the remainder of the quarter, putting together a string of possessions that turned into an 11-point lead at the end of the third.
The Reddies continued to fight back at the start of the fourth quarter, knocking down a couple of buckets to cut the deficit down to nine at 54-45 with five minutes remaining in the contest. It was all SNU the rest of the quarter, largely initiated by Giddey and Monaghan who caused problems for Henderson State on both ends of the floor. Leading by double digits, SNU cleared its bench the last stretch of the ballgame, finishing with a final score of 63-47.
Monaghan achieved her career high in scoring, tallying 23 total points to go along with nine rebounds.
Giddey recorded her fourth double of the double the season in the win, tallying 16 points and 16 boards. She also finished with five blocks.
Cassandra Awatt contributed seven points, four boards, and three steals while Payton Jones added in six points and two assists.
SNU will see their first Arkansas road trip next week as they plan to take on Arkansas Tech Thursday, January 12th at 5:30 p.m. followed by a Harding matchup the following Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Both of these squads sit in the top 5 of the GAC standings, making them two highly anticipated matchups for SNU.
