NAMPA, Idaho - The NNU Athletics Hall of Fame committee has selected one former NNU student-athlete and one team to be inducted in the 2024 class.

Donna Knight '96 and the 1994-95 women's basketball team, on which Knight starred as a junior, will be added to the NNU Athletics Hall of Fame during the 2024 NNU Homecoming Weekend. Knight and the 94-95 team will be the 52nd and 53rd entrants into the prestigious hall.

"I'm excited to announce the 2024 Hall of Fame Class and recognize this incredible group of women who have represented our university so well," said Director of Athletics Paul Rush. "They were a trailblazing group of athletes for us in many respects and they set the stage for the continued success we have had with our women's basketball team.

"The talent of Donna Knight was incredible and the story of her journey here and time at Northwest Nazarene is so motivating for our athletes. We are not only looking forward to having her back on campus and honoring her, but also having her inspire the athletes competing for us today." 

A ceremony will take place at halftime of the men's basketball game against Bushnell University on Saturday, Nov. 9 (game starts at 7:00 p.m.). A reception will also be held for the inductees during the game in the Ferdinand Suite at the Johnson Sports Center. Friends and family are invited to attend the induction ceremonies and greet the honorees at the reception in their honor.
 

Donna Knight, Women's Basketball

Donna was a member of the NNC women's basketball team from 1992-96, helping lead the Crusader program to new heights during her four-year career.

The first player in program history to earn First Team All-American status, Donna was a two-time NAIA All-American honoree with a Second Team honor in 1994-95 and the First Team recognition in 1995-96. She led the Crusaders to the NAIA DII National Championship game in 1994-95, helping NNC to the national runner-up finish. Across her four seasons, the team compiled an overall record of 76-37 (.673).

At the time of her graduation in 1996, she was third in program history with 1,316 points, second with 278 free throws made, second with 110 games played, third with a 52.7 field goal percentage, sixth with 140 steals, and seventh with 695 rebounds. To this day, she remains eighth in career scoring, ninth in free throws made, fifth in field goal percentage, and 11th in rebounding in the NNU women's basketball record books.

Following her final season, Donna also earned one of Northwest Nazarene's prestigious end-of-the-year honors, receiving the Hopkins-Humphrey Female Athlete of the Year accolade for 1995-96.

Hailing from London, England, after graduation Donna was selected to represent the England Senior National Women's Team in various international competitions. She completed a Masters Degree in Emotional Factors in Learning and Teaching; Counseling Aspects in Education from the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation at the University of East London. 

She then worked in education for 25 years, with her final role being as an Assistant Principal and Director of Inclusion. Donna now works independently as a consultant in education and safeguarding, delivering workshops and training. This includes working with a number of Premier League Football Club Academies. She is also a public speaker and an author. Her first book, The Boy Who Saw Double, an homage to her late son Rashard, was published in July 2020. 

Donna is an extremely proud mother of four children - Kaleed, Aliya, Rashard, and Shareef. She also now credits the highlight of her life as being baptized in the sea in March of 2023.
 

1994-95 NNC Women's Basketball Team

The 1994-95 Northwest Nazarene College women's basketball squad enjoyed the greatest season in program history at the time, qualifying for the NAIA National Tournament for the first time and making a run to the National Championship game before finishing as the NAIA DII National Runner-Up. 

NNC went 23-7 overall and 9-3 in Cascade Collegiate Conference action during the season. They won nine of the first 10 regular-season games and were ranked fifth in the nation at one point during the season. As a member of NAIA Division II, NNC posted a 7-1 record against NAIA Division I teams. 

"The 94-95 team was extremely hard-working, liked each other, and always put the interests of the team ahead of themselves," said Roger Schmidt, head women's basketball coach from 1986-2000. "As a result, they were a really fun group to coach."

After falling in the conference tournament, the Crusaders' resume was still good enough to earn an at-large bid to the NAIA Tournament. Held at conference rival Western Oregon's home gym, NNC rattled off victories over Hardin-Simmons (TX), Huron (SD), No. 2 overall seed Findlay (OH), and a thrilling come-from-behind victory over Mount Mercy (IA) in the semifinal to reach the title game. However, it was host Western Oregon who claimed the national championship with a 75-67 victory.

"Since it was our first time playing in the national tournament and we were the 10-seed, we didn't necessarily go into it with too high of expectations, and [assistant coach] Eric Ely and I only traveled with two outfits," added Schmidt. "We ended up winning four games and playing in five, so we had to go to the store after the second win. The team as a whole really enjoyed the tournament and took advantage of the opportunity, and I was glad we were able to surprise some people and advance as far as we did."

On the year, Donna Knight was the team's leading scorer with 14.5 points per game, followed by Kari Smith at 12.8 points per game and Ellen Duncan at 12.6 points per game. Knight and Sandra van Langen shared top rebounding honors with 6.3 per game each. Knight earned Second Team All-American honors and First Team All-Tournament honors at the national championships. Mary Kessel was named Honorable Mention All-American and Second Team All-Tournament.

The women outscored and outrebounded opponents by 11.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest. It was the second highest victory total in the women's program at the time, just one behind the 1990-91 team's 24 wins.