MISSOULA, Mont. - Northwest Nazarene women's basketball took on the University of Montana on Tuesday in their final exhibition before the regular season gets underway, falling to the Grizzlies 84-46.

Montana came out of the gates strong, taking a 15-0 lead before a Teagan Thurman layup got the Nighthawks on the board six minutes into the game, and eventually running it to 22-8 after one quarter. 

NNU faired better in the second frame, putting 17 points on the board before going into halftime down 44-25. The Nighthawks would not get any closer as the night went on as the Grizzlies improved to 1-0 on the year with the game counting towards their overall record.

Thurman just missed a double-double for NNU, also nearly accounting for half of the Nighthawks' scoring with 20 points and nine rebounds. She shot 50% (8-16) from the field and made three triples. 

Erin Jenkins was next for NNU with eight points, followed by Clare Eubanks with six. Jenkins also had six boards, while Lydia Nieto led the team with four assists.

The Nighthawks found their stroke at the free throw line, shooting 90% (9-10) in the contest. NNU also outpaces Montana in second chance points at a margin of 15-14.

NNU's 2021-22 season will officially get underway this weekend in Turlock, California, when the Nighthawks take on Cal State East Bay in a neutral-site matchup on Friday at 5:00 p.m. Pacific. NNU will then square off with weekend host Stanislaus State on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. Read Full Article