NAMPA, ID – The Northwest Nazarene Women's basketball team picked up a tough road loss against Saint Martin's on Thursday the 19th. Despite the efforts put in by the Nighthawks the Saints walked away with the 73-53 win.
Saint Martin's set the tone early in the first quarter, capitalizing on second-chance opportunities as Avery Oaster turned an offensive rebound into a tip-in and later added another layup and a jumper to fuel the Saints' run. Kiana Rios also scored inside, while Jada Travis knocked down two three-pointers to stretch the lead. Trinidie Nichols got NNU on the board with a jumper, and Beaux Bruegman and Kelly Garrity added key free throws to keep the Nighthawks within reach. Kendall Clark chipped in a jumper late, but Saint Martin's closed the quarter strong at the line to take a 21-8 advantage into the second.
Northwest Nazarene opened the second quarter with a spark as Claire Fischer finished a layup, and Sadi Clemons followed with a jumper to cut the deficit to 22-12. Clark and Nichols continued to chip away, with Nichols converting a fastbreak layup and later a three-pointer under a minute to play. Jené Wells and Allie Hueckman added key buckets and free throws, but Saint Martin's answered with a tip-in from Oaster, a three from Kasey Booster, and late points off a turnover to take a 38-25 lead into the break.
Coming out of halftime, the Saints struck first as Rios finished a layup and later added another inside bucket, while Travis knocked down a three to extend the margin to 45-25. Garrity responded with a jumper, and Nichols converted two free throws before Bruegman scored in the paint to keep NNU within reach. Oaster continued to control the glass with multiple second-chance finishes, and a fastbreak three from Karyss Lacanlale pushed the lead past 20. The Nighthawks found moments of momentum with buckets from Wells, Nichols, Bruegman, and a late layup from Fischer, but Saint Martin's closed the quarter with another inside finish to carry a 60-39 advantage into the fourth.
In the final quarter, Saint Martin's extended its lead at the line as Travis converted two free throws before Lacanlale and Oaster added paint finishes to keep the pressure on. Bruegman opened NNU's scoring with a layup, and Fischer knocked down a three-pointer off a pass from Garrity to answer. Wells added a three of her own, and Clark finished inside to trim the deficit to under 20 midway through the quarter. Fischer continued to battle, scoring on a jumper and later a fastbreak layup off a steal by Garrity to bring NNU within 16. However, Oaster proved difficult to stop down the stretch, adding another layup and a late jumper as the Saints capitalized on turnovers to secure the 73-53 victory.
Trinidie Nichols and Claire Fischer led the Nighthawks with 11 points apiece.
The Nighthawks will look to regroup as they travel to Monmouth Oregon to compete against the Western Oregon Wolves on Saturday the 21st at 2:00 PM Pacific Time.
