Coming Up – Northwest Nazarene (February 1, Nampa, Idaho, 4:15 p.m.), Central Washington (February 3, Ellensburg, Washington, 5:15 p.m.).

COMPLETE MEDIA GUIDE

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Hot-Shooting Falcons Outpace Saints In Offensive Shootout – Makenna Schultz took her offensive game to the level, scoring a career-high 33 points on 6-for-7 3-point shooting against the conference's best defense; however, Seattle Pacific outpaced the Saints 94-76 in an unexpected offensive shootout. Everything seem to fall for the sophomore guard, as Schultz ended the night on 9-for-12 shooting and Saniah Simpson-Patu and Mercedes Victor finished with 15 and 14 points respectively. Seattle Pacific (15-3, 9-2) took control of the game with a 35-6 run that stretch nearly 10 minutes, a hole the Saints (6-13, 2-9) could never recover from.
 
Three Big Performances Not Enough As Saints Fall To MSUB – Three massive performances by Makenna Schultz, Saniah Simpson-Patu and Jayla Russ, were not enough to over the Yellowjackets of Montana State Billings, as MSUB held on for a 69-61 victory. The big three for the Saints (6-14, 2-10) scored a combined 52 points, along with 18 rebounds and eight assists; however, the Yellowjackets (15-6, 8-3) shut down the Saints other offensive weapons and survived a fourth quarter comeback attempt once again.
 
Makenna Schultz Named GNAC Player of the Week – Schultz had one of the best scoring weeks any player has had in the GNAC this season, going off for 33 points against the conference's best defense in Seattle Pacific. Schultz scored 26 second half points while knocking down 6-of-7 shots beyond the arc versus the Falcons and was the first Saint to reach the 30-point mark since Jan. 5, 2016. She did not cool off in the road trip to Montana, adding 19 points and three more 3-pointers, along with three assists. She finished the week averaging 26.0 ppg, 2.0 apg, 66.7 percent from the field, and a staggering 69.2 percent beyond the arc. The award marked the first for Schultz in her career.

Saints Lose Centerpiece Of Program – Senior Elin Johansson, suffered an injury in the win over Alaska, represents a major loss to the Saints. She ranked third in scoring (14.9), third in field goal percentage (51.3), fifth in minutes played (31.3), eighth in blocked shots (0.8), 10th in defensive rebounding (4.4), 12th in rebounding (6.5), and 13th in offensive rebounding (2.1) at the time of her loss.

Simpson-Patu Rises As One Of The Best In GNAC– One of the top freshman in the conference and country, Simpson-Patu rose up on the GNAC Leaderboard. She began the conference season with 16-points, seven rebounds and two assists, in 29 minutes against Western Oregon. Leading the Saints over Concordia, Simpson-Patu scored a career-high 23 points, along with six rebounds, four assists on 9-for-15 shooting. She continued her run with a 21-point, and career-high 14-rebounds, for her first collegiate double-double against Oklahoma Christian and seven points and nine rebounds against MSUB. Simpson-Patu hit the 20-point mark for the third time with 21 points against Simon Fraser, before setting a new career-high in points with 27 against Alaska. She now ranks fifth in scoring (14.5), fourth in defensive rebounding (5.4) sixth in rebounding (7.1), and sixth in minutes played (31.4).

Schultz, Developing Into A Star – Sophomore Makenna Schultz is finding her way, inside a competitive GNAC, after scoring a then career-high 20 points against Western Oregon. She shot 8-for-13 from the field with two 3-pointers along with setting a career-high in rebounds with eight. Schultz eclipsed the double-digit scoring average with a 14-point performance at Seattle Pacific, along with six rebounds. She was once again a spark off the bench against MSUB with 15 points and six rebounds. She earned a spot in the starting lineup and reward Christy Martin with a 13-point, 3-steal performance against CWU and a new career-high 22 points versus NNU. Schultz quickly set a new career-high in points with 33 against SPU en route to her first GNAC Player of the Week Award. Schultz is now third on the team in scoring at 12.6 ppg, which ranks tied for 15th in conference, along with 2.7 rpg, 1.7 apg, and 1.0 spg.  

Saniah Simpson-Patu Named Saint of the Month – Every month Saint Martin's selects one male and female athlete as Saint of the Month. Simpson-Patu after dominating opponents in the month of December and proving to be one of the best players in the conference, has earned the Saint of the Month award. The award marks her first of the collegiate career. 

Northwest Nazarene Preview – Northwest Nazarene enters the week with a five-game win streak and currently sit tied for second in conference at 10-2 and 14-3 overall. Under second year head coach Steve Steele, the Nighthawks feature three scorers who average double-digits on a nightly basis. Led by Lexi Tubbs at 13.6 ppg, Tubbs also creates action down low and grabs 6.4 rpg. McKenna Walker brings in 11.5 ppg along with 3.4 rpg while shooting 46.3 percent from the field. Danielle Jardine comes off the bench is third in scoring at 10.9 ppg along with 5.3 rpg. Colette Gall and Raquel Jardine have started every game and combined for nearly 16 ppg and over nine rebounds per match. NNU can also turn to Marina Valles and Avery Albrecht who equal 9.3 and 7.9 ppg respectively. As a team, NNU has dominated their opponents by scoring a league best 79.0 ppg and allowing only 66.4 ppg. The Nighthawks shoot 44.1 percent from the field, 36.8 percent beyond the arc, and 72.9 percent at the line. NNU averages 38.9 rpg, 14.1 apg on 17.3 turnovers per game, along with 10.9 spg, and 3.1 bpg.

Projected Starters For NNU:
G Kaitlyn Merritt, G Makenna Walker, G Lexi Tubbs, G/F Colette Gall, F Raquel Jardine

Central Washington Preview – Riding a four-game win streak, Central Washington will host Seattle Pacific before Saint Martin's comes to town. Central features five scoring threats, led by Jasmin Edwards and Sadie Mensing, who average 13.4 and 12.9 ppg. Edwards is shooting 41.8 percent from the field and 35.1 percent beyond the arc this season, along with a team-leading 4.6 assists per game. Mensing averages 4.2 rebounds per game while maintaining a 43.3 field goal percentage. Alexis Pana is tied for tied in scoring at 9.5, along with 3.4 rebounds and 3.25 apg. Taylor Baird and Kaelie Flores will likely get considerable playing time, with both combining for 18.0 ppg, and 12.6 rpg. As a unit, Central Washington is scoring 71.4 ppg while allowing the second worst 69.6 ppg. CWU shoots 42.4 percent from the field, 32.7 percent beyond the arc and 67.7 percent at the free throw line. The Wildcats average 38.1 rpg, 14.2 apg on 15.9 turnovers per game, along with 7.4 steals per game and 4.0 blocks per game.

Projected Starters For CWU:
G Beverly Verduin, G Jasmin Edwards, F Sadie Mensing, F Rachel Lorentson, F Taylor Baird

GNAC Recap – Alaska Anchorage quickly bounced back from their lost two weeks ago, winning both games and improving to 11-1 in conference action. However, Seattle Pacific and Northwest Nazarene extended their win streaks to remain only one game behind the leader at 10-2. Montana State Billings and Central Washington are now locked at fourth with 8-4 records with Concordia holding the final playoff spot at 5-7. Simon Fraser, Western Oregon and Western Washington all sit one game outside the GNAC tournament at 4-8. Saint Martin's and Alaska round out the standings at 2-10 and 0-12 respectively.