NAMPA, ID — Saint Martin's Women's Basketball (14-9, 7-8 GNAC) traveled east to face Northwest Nazarene in a Thursday night GNAC contest.

The Saints and Nighthawks would begin the game trading points, with Madelyn Brown and Avery Oaster scoring SMU's opening baskets. Brown would go on to score four points and contribute a team-leading four steals, four rebounds and register the Saints' only block of the evening. Oaster would record nine points, snag three boards, and grab two steals. The Nighthawks would play tough defense and begin to limit the Saints' scoring opportunities as the first period went on, limiting SMU to just nine points in the opening 10 minutes and would hold a 17-9 lead over SMU after one period. Saint Martin's would find their groove in the second period however. The scoring effort would be sustained for SMU by freshman guard Jada Travis, who would be the team's leading scorer, dropping 16 points and sniffing a double-double with nine boards and a team-leading five assists, while also matching Brown's four steals. While SMU would still trail at half, they would close the deficit to just five points with a score of 36-31.

Kiana Rios would get the Saints started in the second half with a tip-in that would contribute to her 14 total points while also contributing six rebounds and two assists. Saint Martin's would see a more consistent scoring effort as the game went on, with Kasey Booster registering 13 points and Mya Hatchett recording her second double-digit scoring effort this season with 12, but Northwest Nazarene would match the surge. NNU would score 27 points in the third period, putting SMU at a 15-point deficit heading into the fourth. Saint Martin's would claw back, cutting the lead to as low as five once again, but the Nighthawks would take advantage of their opportunities at the stripe late into the game and claim the win over SMU, 77-70. 

SMU Women's Basketball will be back in action in Ellensburg to take on Central Washington on Saturday, February 22nd. You can get tickets here.