(Bethany, Okla.)---The Southern Nazarene University women’s basketball team matched up against the Trevecca Nazarene University Trojans this afternoon. The fast-paced, down-to-the-wire game ended disappointingly for the Crimson Storm, as they lost 67-70. This loss moves them to 6 and 2 on the season.

Box Score

The Crimson Storm started the game off right with a three pointer from Lana Keith. On the other end of the court, Keith stole the ball, tipped it back in to Marsha Durr to save it from going out of bounds, who then fed the ball right back to the streaking Keith who banked it in. The Storm continued to fire on all cylinders, with Logan Martin hitting her first attempt of the game for 3 points, and Keith slashing to the hole for two more.

On the very next SNU possession, it was again Keith who drove hard to the bucket, the hard contact from her Trevecca defender was called intentional, sending Keith to the line for two and returning the ball to SNU after. Only 3 minutes into the game, Keith had already scored 10 points, shooting 100% from both the floor and the foul line. Like a well-oiled machine, SNU continued to push the ball up the floor with a pace that the Trojans found difficult to adjust to. However, TNU was not impotent on offense themselves, after 7 minutes of the game had been played, the Storm led only narrowly, 19-14.

The furious pace of the first several minutes slowed somewhat as the half neared its halfway point, and SNU’s offense slowed with it. A 4-minute dry spell for the Storm found the Storm leading 23-22 with 6:30 left in the first half. In the seconds following the Trojan defense jumped in front of a pass and took a momentary lead on the following bucket. Jacque Farrar, however, quickly amended the situation, hitting her first shot of the game for 3 points putting SNU back up 26-25. As the game approached the 3 minute mark TNU once again tied it up, this time at 28-28, and then proceeded to go up 28-30.

Abbey Marra, on her first shot of the evening evened it at 30-30 before the Trojans went back up on a 3-pointer. A foul shot made a moment later put them up 30-34. Sharmeda Johnson, working down low, put up 2 points for the Storm just before the half expired and the teams went to the locker room with the scoreboard showing 32-34.

After a disappointing last ten minutes of the first half, the Crimson Storm came out for the second half hoping to recapture the pace and consistency of early in the game. However, a quick return to scoring from the Trojans and continued cold shooting from SNU found the Crimson Storm down 34-43 with 16:00 left in the game. Minutes later, with the Trojan lead expanded to 10, Johnson found Keith on the left wing. Keith’s 3-pointer, and a two layups a bit later in the game, were the only SNU points in the 2nd five minutes of the half. As the clock showed 10:00, the Crimson Storm trailed 45-54.

The following three minutes of the game saw good shots from Keith and Martin, but the Trojans kept pace, and maintained their lead. With seven minutes remaining in the game, the Storm began to claw back, so that when the clock read 6:00, they were only down 6 points. Two good foul shots from Marra narrowed the gap to 4 and returned the spring to the player’s steps and the noise to the home stands.

However, the Trevecca Trojans refused to loosen their grip on the game. Down by 7 as the last minute of the game began, the Storm fought back within 3 as solid defense on the TNU inbound passes resulted in two steals and two buckets. However, as SNU brought the ball down the court from a missed Trevecca shot the pass to the basket was bobbled, pounced on by a Trojan player who rolled over, holding the ball. Ignoring the traveling call, the referee called a jump ball as Martin sought to regain the ball. The possession arrow pointed towards TNU, who proceeded to inbound the ball. This inbounds was actually stolen, but the last second shot missed hard off the backboard and the Crimson Storm fell 67-70.

Lana Keith led the team in scoring, with 26 points, shooting 3 for 8 from 3-point range. Sharmeda Johnson shared the lead in rebounds with Keith; both had 7. This afternoon’s loss put the SNU record at 6-2.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm women's basketball team held off MidAmerica Nazarene on Friday night in the Sawyer Center, 70-60, to improve to 6-1 on the year.

Box Score

Lana Keith scored the first points of the game, driving hard to her right and swishing a floater from about 8 feet. The Pioneers responded immediately with a three pointer on the other end. Logan Martin joined her teammate shortly thereafter to get the SNU’s offense rolling. Four minutes into the game, Martin stole a lazy pass and took it all the way to the other end, taking the hard contact and putting the Crimson Storm up 6-3.

MNU countered without hesitation, hitting another three-pointer to even the game at 6-6. The game proceeded in furious fashion with both teams pushing the ball hard up the floor, trading baskets back and forth. MNU’s first time out after 5 minutes of play ended with Abbey Marra entering the game for the Storm. Her presence was felt immediately as she quickly put up 4 points on her first two attempts of the evening.

Jacque Farrar had also come in for SNU, and with 12:15 left in the half, hit her first shot of the evening for 3 points. Her shot put SNU up 18-10. It was during this period of strong play off the bench that SNU spread their lead over the Pioneers. The Storm’s lead fluctuated as the half continued, reaching as much as 13, but never falling below 8.

Physical play down low, quick, flashing play on the perimeter, and a strong presence in the midrange by usual-perimeter player Jamie Bottger characterized the first half for SNU. The Storm’s sharp defense throughout the first twenty minutes is really what separated the two teams, as each steal, block, or ball thrown away prevented MNU from scoring, and often led to points for SNU on the other end of the court. Without these turnovers, the score would have been much closer than the 36-24 that showed as the half expired.

The start of the second half saw Keith hit yet another three pointer, her second of the evening. The Pioneers fired back with their own three pointer. An exchange of points in the first few minutes quickly boosted the score to 45-31 This comfortable lead, the Storm’s largest yet, would not last. The Pioneers began to claw back, slowly gaining until, with 9:23 showing after a string of SNU turnovers, they cut the lead back down under 10, first to 9, and then to 7 before a 3-pointer by Farrar opened the score back up to 55-45.

The attacking MNU squad was tenacious, however, and three minutes later the margin of SNU’s lead was only 5 points. Only moments later, after a brief surge from the Storm, the Pioneers were once again threatening, only down by 4 points. With the shot clock running down, Bottger drove to the hole, taking the foul and banking in the layup as the buzzer sounded. As if this was the last breath before the plunge, the Storm surged back ahead, breaking MNU’s full-court press every time down the court, and scoring consistently.

Big shots from Keith, Bottger, and Marra propelled SNU back into 10 point lead, which they maintained till the buzzer sounded and the scoreboard showed 70-60, SNU victorious.

Lana Keith and Logan Martin lead the team in scoring, with 16 and 15 points respectively. Abbey Marra led off the bench with 8 points of her own, and 6 rebounds, a number she shared with Martin. Tonight’s win moved the Storm to 6-1 on the season.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The 15th-ranked Crimson Storm women’s basketball team improved to 5-1 on the year with a hard fought victory over Langston University on Tuesday night. SNU saw a comfortable 14-point halftime lead erased, but held on for the 80-77 victory.

Box Score

In the first half, it was all SNU as the Crimson Storm held a commanding lead throughout the duration of the first half of play. SNU shot an impressive 55% from the floor, while Langston struggled offensively, connecting on only 24% of their first half shots. SNU led at halftime 41-27.

Early in the second half, SNU increased their advantage to as many 16 points before LU began to chip away down the stretch. The Lions took their first lead at the 2:44 mark, grabbing a 75-74 lead.

SNU quickly tied and took the lead on two made free throws from Marsha Durr. Langston went back ahead on a Stephanie Madden bucket with 2:08 to play, putting the Lady Lions up 77-76.

It took SNU one minute to answer only their second deficit of the night, but with 1:18 to play, Logan Martin hit a jumper to put SNU back up 78-77. Martin’s bucket would prove to be the game winner.

LU had an opportunity at a three with :56 seconds to play, but Sanetra Jackson’s three did not fall. SNU turned the ball over on their next possession, giving Langston yet another shot with :11 seconds left. Ashley Gray picked up a steal for LU and was fouled, but missed the front end of the one-and-one. Lana Keith was then fouled on the rebound and Keith delivered two key free throws to put SNU up 80-77 with :09 seconds to play.

Langston had a three with two seconds to play to try and tie, but the three missed, sealing the SNU win, 80-77.

Individually, SNU was led by Lana Keith’s 14 points. Logan Martin added 13, Ashley Mantooth and Jamie Bottger finished with eleven and Abbey Marra put in ten points. Bottger had a double-double, adding ten rebounds to her eleven points.

Langston was led by Stephanie Madden’s double-double of 30 points and 14 rebounds. Shonderlette Paul added 12 points and Sanetra Jackson finished with ten.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Southern Nazarene University Women’s Basketball team welcomed the Southwestern Christian University Lady Eagles to the Sawyer Center this evening, beating them 94-46 to move to 4-1 on the season.

Box Score

Winning the tip, the Crimson Storm immediately took it down the floor and, after working it around the perimeter, kicked it inside to Ashley Mantooth who put up the first points of the night. Less than a minute later, Logan Martin found Lana Keith open on the right wing, from whence she buried her first three of the night. The Lady Eagles were not going to be easily beaten.

After falling behind 5-0, they rebounded quickly and were not more than 4 points behind the Storm for the next few minutes. That margin was widened before too long by Keith’s second three of the night, putting the game at 15-8. The game progressed in this fashion for several minutes. SCU would hold score regularly, but not necessarily often, while SNU steadily pulled away.

Down by as much as 12 at the ten-minute mark, the Lady Eagles had fought back within 6 with eight minutes left. The Crimson Storm did not allow that to last, however, and proceeded to widen the margin once again, led by Jamie Bottger and Oumoul Thiam who had several scoring efforts running the floor and outpacing the SCU defenders.

With three minutes remaining in the half the score sat at 37-25. It was here that the Lady Eagles defense stiffened, and began to challenge the Storm both down low and around the perimeter. Undeterred, SNU patiently worked the ball around on offense, and refused to allow any but the most earned of points. Thus when the buzzer sounded for halftime the score had not changed over-much, with the Storm up 43-31. Bottger led the team at halftime with 10 points, shooting 5-8 from the floor.

The start of the second half saw two quick fouls, one on each end of the floor. The first resulted in a single point for the Lady Eagles, and the second led to two successful foul shots for the Crimson Storm. The first five minutes of the second half were filled with the SNU squad widening their lead to twenty points, battling against an increasingly physical SCU defense. This was evidenced by the noticeably increased frequency with which the referees employed their whistles. The points gained thus from the line and points won on fast breaks were influential in the gaining of this gap.

Five minutes after they had reached the 20-point lead mark, they reached 30. This was achieved almost exclusively by Jacque Farrar, who hit five straight three pointers on five straight possessions, bringing the crowd to their feet.

As if any more were needed, Katie Novak followed quickly after Farrar’s feat, hitting her first three of the night and putting SNU within sight of a 40-point lead. A few foul shots from Mantooth and a strong put-back by Sharmeda Johnson gained the Storm that lead, with the score 79-39. The last ten minutes of the game appeared to move quite slowly, after the furious scoring of Farrar’s run. The Crimson Storm continued to pull away from the Lady Eagles, ending with a 48-point lead. The final score: 94-46.

The Crimson Storm was led in scoring by Ashley Mantooth's 16 points.  Farrar and Keith finished with 15 and Bottger added eleven. 

(BETHANY, Okla.)---After three blowout wins to start the season, SNU suffered their first loss of the season on Monday night at Evangel University to fall to 3-1 on the year. The Lady Crusaders, who are ranked 24th in the pre-season NAIA poll, held a 12-point halftime advantage and held on to win by nine over the higher ranked Storm.

Most of SNU’s problems were foul related as the Storm was whistled for 27 fouls, leading to 31 free throws shots for Evangel. SNU wasn’t as fortunate, making only 17 trips to the line, hitting 14. SNU also struggled from three, hitting only 4-of-12 after entering the game knocking down 50% of their shots from three.

Tonight, SNU looks to get back on track against fellow Bethany school, Southwestern Christian. SCU is 0-1 on the year after an 82-54 loss to Southwestern Assemblies of God University in their season opener.

SNU and Southwestern Christian have met only one time previous, back in the 2005-06 season. In that game, SNU cruised to a 71-49 victory.

After tonight, SNU will be at home for four-straight games that include Langston, who is receiving votes in the pre-season NAIA poll, along with Nazarene rivals MidAmerica and #13 Trevecca next weekend. SNU will then open up SAC play with John Brown on December 3rd.

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Game Day Program

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Live Audio

(PT. LOOKOUT, Mo.)---The 15th-ranked Crimson Storm women’s basketball team was upset by 24th-ranked Evangel on Monday night in Missouri, falling by a score of 77-68. The loss drops SNU to 3-1 on the year.

Box Score

SNU trailed by 12 at halftime, 42-30, and were down by as many as 16 at one point in the second half before rallying to cut the final deficit to nine points. Individually, SNU was led by Lana Keith’s 24 points. Audra Skimbo followed with ten and Logan Martin added nine points.

SNU did manage to out-rebound the Crusaders 38-35, but Evangel got the Storm at the free throw line, shooting 31 to SNU’s 17. SNU hit 44% from the floor, 33% from three and 82% from the line.

SNU will be back in action on Friday night at home against Southwestern Christian at 6:00 p.m. in the Sawyer Center.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm women’s basketball team improved to 3-0 on the season with another huge victory, downing Huston-Tillotson University 106-47 on Friday night during the Homecoming festivities. SNU controlled the game, and pulled away in the second half after being plagued by turnovers in the first half.

Box Score

SNU took the lead on tip off, with a 15-foot jumper from Lana Keith, and continue to widen the margin, with two free throws from Keith and a coast-to-coast lay-up from Logan Martin. The Storm went ahead 9-0 with a trey from Martin, but the Lady Rams got on the board for the first time with two free throws. SNU continued to build on the lead, going ahead 17-4 with 13:08 remaining in the half with a lay-up from Abbey Marra.

The Lady Rams attempted to narrow the margin, applying full court pressure that forced several Storm turnovers, but SNU regrouped and began putting points on the board again. Leading 23-12, the Storm continued to struggle to make the most of their possessions. Keith gave SNU six quick points, however, draining back-to-back three’s with under six minutes to play in the half.

With time in the first half winding down, Marra knocked down two jumpers, and SNU took a commanding 35-16 lead with 3:44 to play. Audra Skimbo came off the bench and gave the Storm back-to-back buckets in the paint to increase SNU’s lead even more. Also coming off the bench and giving the Storm a spark was Lauren Langston, who drained a shot from behind the arc with just over a minute to play, and tacked on one-of-two from the free throw line to give SNU a 43-19 lead with :59 remaining. Keith closed off the half from the Storm with an easy lay-up on and in bounds play, and SNU led 45-13 at the break.

The Storm came out hitting in the second half, with Keith giving SNU their first points of the half with her third trey ball of the evening. Tacking of 11 more points after Keith’s three-pointer, SNU took a 59-24 lead with 15:48 to play in the game. Ashley Mantooth hit the boards hard from SNU to give them several second chances and finishing three put backs of her own.

The Storm continued to widen the gap, going up 70-27 with 12:32 remaining in the game. The 11-to-3 SNU run saw several different players get in the books, with buckets coming from Martin, Mantooth, Marra, Jamie Botteger, and Jacque Farrar.

Continuing to control the game, SNU pulled further and further away, scoring on nearly every possession midway through the half. Abbey Marra was at the forefront of the Storm dominance, scoring six points during the run. With 9:26 remaining in the game, SNU led 82-33, maintaining complete control of the second half.

Katie Novack came in off the bench for the Storm and scored back to back buckets, draining her first shot of the night, a jumper from behind the arc, to get in the books for the first time. Marsha Durr and Audra Skimbo added three-pointers as well, and SNU led by 57 points with 4:33 to play in the game, 95038.

With under three minutes to play, the Storm broke 100 with a jumper from Skimbo that widened the lead to 61, and made the score 101-42. Time ticked, and two of the Lady Rams six players fouled out, leaving them with just four players on the court for the last few minutes of the game as SNU iced the game away, winning 106-47.

For the game, SNU shot 56% from the field (41-of-73), 43% from behind the arc (10-23), and 74% from the charity stripe (14-19). The Storm also dominated the boards, pulling down 64 rebounds to Huston-Tillotson’s 20.

Lana Keith finished the game as SNU’s leading scorer with 18 points. Keith was 6-8 from the field, 4-of-5 from behind the arc, and 2-2 from the free throw line. Logan Martin added a double-double of 15 points and 11 assists for SNU, and Abbey Marra finished the game with 14 points and seven rebounds.

Both Ashley Mantooth and Audra Skimbo finished in double digits as well, adding 13 a piece for SNU.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm destroyed Dallas Christian the last time we saw SNU last Saturday. The Crimson Storm had a record-breaking performance against the Crusaders, walloping DCC 123-25. In the win, SNU set a variety of new records; including most three’s in a game with 21. The Storm’s 21 three’s against Dallas Christian is also a new Sooner Athletic Conference record. SNU also set a new school mark for biggest winning margin, winning by 98 points. The previous record was 92 points.

SNU’s three-point shooting has definitely been the story early on as SNU is hitting a whopping 50% of their three-point attempts. The Storm have connected on 31-of-62 from beyond the arc, led by senior Lana Keith’s 64% from three. Keith, who tied a school record last year with 79 three’s, is 9-for-14 from beyond the arc in two games. But, while Keith is SNU’s main gun, the Storm has definitely spread the wealth as eight players have connected on a three-pointer this year.

Tonight, SNU welcomes Huston-Tillotson to the Sawyer Center on Homecoming. HTC will be playing their first game of the year tonight.

SNU and Huston-Tillotson have met once with the Crimson Storm winning their only meeting back in 2007, 103-64.

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SNU vs. HTC

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Live Stats

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm women's basketball team blasted Dallas Christian 123-25 in the final game of the SNU Classic on Saturday afternoon in the Sawyer Center.  The win improves SNU to 2-0 on the year.  In the process, SNU set a variety of records, including setting the new SNU and Sooner Athletic Conference three-pointers made in a game with 21.  The previous school mark was 14 and the SAC record was 20.  SNU also set the school record for largest margin of victory, winning by 98 points.  The previous mark was 92. 

Box Score

The sun was shining and the wind was blowing the leaves in the trees, filling the air with rustling this afternoon here in Bethany, Oklahoma, but inside the Sawyer Center the sound of basketballs bouncing and the SNU drum line dominated.

In a near replay from the night before, the Crimson Storm started off at a lightning pace. The first three possessions for Dallas Christian ended in steals by SNU, two of the three resulting in easy layups for the Storm. The Crusader defense would hardly get down the court on defense before they found the slashing and passing SNU offense upon them. After six minutes of the first half had passed the Storm were up 14-2.

Constant pressure on defense did not allow anything but frantic, panicky efforts for Dallas Christian, a drive ended in a blocked shot more often than not, and jump shots were attempted with at least one SNU defender looming large in front of the shooter. Before seven minutes of the half had been played, SNU’s Lauren Langston and Lana Keith had combined for 4 three-pointers, shooting 100% from behind the arc.

As the half progressed, the Storm settled into a grueling pace, pushing the ball hard down the court, often passing lagging Crusader defenders. Logan Martin and Marsha Durr, SNU’s point guards, moved the ball around the perimeter with impunity, sending it inside to the post, played by Abbey Marra, Sharmeda Johnson, and Ashley Mantooth, from which the ball either went in the basket, or back out to the guards. With five minutes remaining in the half, the score was a remarkable 53-7.

The strong play continued, with SNU’s stifling defense allowing only 9 points in the entire first half. The offense, on the other hand, put up 66 points, shooting 63.2% from the floor and making 12 of 18 from three-point range. The score at half time: 66-9.

The second half began as a slightly more subdued version of the first. The pace was just a touch under blistering, and the play underneath the basket was not quite so dominant. But three-pointers still fell like rain. SNU made four three-pointers in the first three minutes, though thereafter they cooled off.

Consistency was the name of the game this afternoon. The Storm remained on top of their game, with exceptional defense, and overwhelming offense. With 3:15 remaining in the game the score was 112-24, and while the Storm had slowed down their play, they were still absolutely dominant. With the second half passing as if a dream, the buzzer at the end of the game came as a bit of a shock, heralding the end with a score of 123-25.

The numbers for this game were absolutely ridiculous: SNU shot 44 for 79 from the floor, and 21-36 from beyond the arc, breaking both the SNU and SAC conference records for three-pointers. They also broke the record for largest winning margin in school history, it was 92, but is now 98. The defense forced 24 turnovers. Lana Keith was again the leading scorer, with 23, shooting 7 for 10 from behind the arc. Katie Novak followed close behind, with 20 points (6 for 8 from three-point range). Katie was also the leading rebounder, with 12.   Other double figure scorers were Oumoul Thiam with 18 points, Jacque Farrar with 13 and Lauren Langston with 12. 

The Crimson Storm will play their next game November 6, at home against Huston-Tillotson.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---Southern Nazarene University opened its women’s basketball season this evening in their first game of the SNU Classic, against Ecclesia College. In an impressive show of their potential for this season, the Crimson Storm smashed the Lady Royals 97-54.

Box Score

The first half began in furious fashion. Ecclesia won the ball off the jump and promptly drew a blocking foul down underneath the basket, scoring on both free-throw attempts. SNU responded immediately, pushing the ball down the floor and kicking it inside to Ashley Mantooth who banked it in from about 5 feet. On the ensuing Ecclesia possession, Mantooth again showed her size, rearing up to block an Ecclesia jumper from the free-throw line.

The game progressed with both teams pressing on defense, forcing mistakes. However, Ecclesia could not keep up with the firing Crimson Storm offense, led by another bucket from Mantooth, and several slashing layups from Logan Martin. The hustle of the first three and half minutes calmed somewhat, as each team began to run a half-court offense, this was interrupted by Martin stealing the ball and taking it all the way down the court for two more. After only four minutes of play the score was 16-6, with SNU leading.

Upon the resumption of play, SNU forced yet another turnover, with Oumoul Thiam stealing the ball and sending it down the court to Lana Keith. The very next Ecclesia possession again saw a steal, this one by Abbey Marra, and a follow up bucket by Logan Martin, who blew by her defender with a quick first step to lay it in.

SNU’s almost frantic-paced offense had already begun to take its toll on their Ecclesia opponents, as Logan Martin pushed the ball up the court, running by defenders struggling to keep their feet from dragging. Martin kicked the ball out to Lauren Langston, who hit the three-pointer to bring the score to 27-10.

The first half was characterized by the alternation of slow and fast paced play. SNU dominated, imposing their will upon the Lady Royals, controlling the pace of the game.
The SNU fast-break offense again showed its effectiveness as the clock read 8:05. From an inbound pass, Marsha Durr passed the entire Ecclesia defense in one well-placed pass to Mantooth, who laid it in. A following three-pointer from Keith put SNU up 38-19.

The last minute of the first half can be seen as a microcosm of the entire game thus far. With a commanding lead, the SNU defense forced the Lady Royals to throw a high floating pass over the middle, which Marra firmly brought down for another turn-over gained for the Storm. As she brought the ball down, Martin called for her teammates to clear from the right side of the court. Feigning a drive, Martin pulled up for a mid-range jumper, which found nothing but the soft, white fibers of the net. The consistently stifling Storm defense did not allow a good look from the Royals on their next possession, and the teams headed to the locker room at half with the score at 48-32.

The first four minutes of the second half much resembled the last four of the first. The Crimson Storm defense imposed their will upon the Royals’ offense, and the SNU offense outscored their opponents 21-8 in the first four minutes, with the score reading 69-40.

The pace in the second half was much slower than what we saw in the first half. Each team walked the ball across half-court, rather than the fast-break style of play from earlier in the game. In fact, halfway through the half, SNU had only scored 6 points in the six minutes following their 21-points in the first four minutes of the half.

SNU controlled the second half, and made it look easy. After the first four minutes, there were no dazzling runs for many points in a short period of time. Rather, the play was slow and deliberate, the defense solid, and the scoring was fruitful. Durr, who ran the point for the majority of the half, would work the ball around the perimeter, moving it in to Marra or Audra Skimbo who would kick it back out to Langston, Jeffries, or Novak who would bury a three. Or the ball would work around the perimeter before being fed into the post players mentioned above, who made short work of their defenders.

“I think we showed great teamwork, especially in the second half” said Marra after the game. In this fashion, SNU calmly built a staggering lead, while refusing to allow points on the defense end of the court. The Storm ended the game up 97-54.

The Crimson Storm was led on offense by Lana Keith, who had 21 points, and Logan Martin, who had 12 assists. Martin finished with a double-double of 15 points and 12 assists.  Other players in double figures were Jamie Bottger and Jacque Farrar with 12 points apiece, Ashley Mantooth with 11 and Lauren Langston with 10.  Bottger added a team high eight rebounds.  On defense, Abbey Marra led the way with 3 blocks and also had 7 rebounds.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The 2009-10 women’s basketball season tips off on Friday night in the Sawyer Center. SNU is coming off a 24-8 record in 2008-09 and a 17-5 finish in the Sooner Athletic Conference. SNU made the program’s 18th trip to nationals a year ago, but lost in round one to Azusa Pacific and are looking for a longer stay in Jackson come March of 2010.

Tonight, SNU will begin their quest for the program’s 8th NAIA National Championship.

SNU has a wealth of talent returning from their 24-win season a year ago. NAIA All-Americans Logan Martin (3rd team) and Lana Keith (3rd team) are back after huge seasons a year ago. Martin earned the SAC’s Freshman of the Year Award after leading SNU in scoring with 15.9 points per game. Keith was a First Team All-SAC member after finishing second on the team in scoring with 15.8 points per game and tying a school record for three’s made with 79.

The reigning SAC Coach of the Year, Lori Carter, will also have returning starter, Ashley Mantooth (7.1 ppg) and fourth leading scorer, Abbey Marra (8.4 ppg) back from a year ago down low.

To read more about SNU’s upcoming season, click here…
SNU Season Preview

Ecclessia will begin only their second year of intercollegiate basketball tonight. The Lady Royals went 12-19 in their inaugural season last year.

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Ecclesia Season Preview

SNU and Ecclesia will be meeting for the first time on Friday. All-time, SNU is 28-7 in season openers, but is 23-0 since the 1986-87 season.

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Game Day Program

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm women's basketball team is ranked #15 in the pre-season NAIA national rankings released on Tuesday.  SNU is coming off the program's 18th trip to the NAIA National Tournament last March.  The Crimson Storm posted a 24-8 record last season under SAC Coach of the Year, Lori Carter.

In the pre-season poll, SNU received 148 votes to come in at #15.  SNU was ranked 14th in the final poll of 2008-09.  Other SAC schools that were ranked include Oklahoma Baptist (#3), Oklahoma City (#8), SNU (#15), and Lubbock Christian (#19).

To view the complete poll, click here...

NAIA Pre-Season Rankings

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm women’s basketball team is picked to finish 3rd in the pre-season Sooner Athletic Conference Coaches Poll released on Tuesday. SNU received 96 total votes in the poll, including one first place vote.

Oklahoma Baptist is picked to finish first in the poll, receiving 118 points with eight first place votes. OBU was the 2008-09 regular season champions. Oklahoma City follows with 110 total votes and two first place votes. After SNU is Lubbock Christian in fourth with 90 total votes.

SNU finished 17-5 in Sooner Athletic Conference play a year ago, finishing tied for 3rd place in the SAC final standings with Oklahoma City in the 12-team league. SNU posted a 24-8 record under sixth-year head coach Lori Carter.

To view the complete coaches poll, click here…
2009-10 SAC Pre-Season Coaches Poll

The Crimson Storm made the program’s 18th and 3rd consecutive appearance at the NAIA National Tournament last year after posting a 24-8 record under 7th year head coach, Lori Carter. Carter guided SNU to a 17-5 finish in the SAC last year, which was good enough for 3rd place and earned Carter the SAC’s Coach of the Year award.

While the 08-09 season was another successful one for the Crimson Storm program, SNU left some things undone as the Storm was bounced in the first round of the NAIA National Tournament.

This year, SNU looks to make a return trip to Jackson, and hopefully and extended trip in Tennessee come March.

SNU will have to replace third leading scorer, Kinzie Didier, from a last year’s team. Didier finished up a stellar career as the Crimson Storm program’s 21st all-time leading scorer with 1,161 career points. Didier also finished with over 500 rebounds during her SNU career.

The good news for the Storm is that SNU has a wealth of talent returning from last year’s national tournament team.

Guard
5’8 sophomore Logan Martin will control the guard position. Martin was superb as a freshman, scoring a team high 15.9 points per game and earning SAC Freshman of the Year honors and NAIA Third Team All-American honors last year. Martin had a team high 127 assists and connected on 37% of her three-point attempts, starting all 32 games at the point.

Martin will be joined in the backcourt by returning 5’10 senior, Lauren Langston. Langston appeared in 30 games last year, averaging 1.6 points per contest and hitting 43% from three.

SNU also added junior Katie Novack and freshmen Marsha Durr and Oumoul Thiam to the backcourt during the offseason.

Novack, a 5’9 transfer from Garden City Community College, had an outstanding JUCO career, earning Second Team All-Conference last year after leading the conference in scoring.

Durr, a 5’6 freshman from Plano, Texas, averaged 17.8 points per game as a senior along with 4.3 assists.

Thiam, 6’0 freshman from Senegal, continues the SNU tradition of outstanding players from the country of Senegal and should have an immediate impact for SNU as a freshman.

Forward
The forward position will be highlighted by the return of 6’0 senior, Lana Keith. Keith finished the 08-09 season as an NAIA Third Team All-American and First Team All-Conference selection. Lana averaged 15.8 points per game and tied a school record for most three-pointers made in a season with 79. Keith connected on 41% of her three-point attempts last year, which is 9th best all-time for a single season in school history. For her career, Lana is now 23rd on SNU’s all-time career scoring list with 1,061 points.

Also returning from a year ago at the forward position are sophomores Audra Skimbo and Sharmeda Johnson.

Skimbo, 5’11, appeared in 29 games last year and scored 3.5 points per game. Johnson, 6’0, appeared in 24 games and averaged 2.7 points per game.

SNU will also return redshirt freshman, Jamie Bottger. Bottger was forced to redshirt after suffering a pre-season injury last fall. Bottger comes from Bethany High School where she had a stellar high school career for the Lady Bronchos.

SNU also added 5’11 freshman, Porschea Jeffries, and 5’10 junior, Jacque Farrar to the mix at forward this season.

Jeffries averaged 12.2 points per game as a senior at Del City High School and was a First Team All-Conference selection.

Farrar was an All-State selection at Kingfisher High School before enrolling at Northern Oklahoma Junior College. At NOC, Farrar averaged 8.9 points per game and earned First Team All-Region and First Team All-Conference honors.

Center
The post position will feature two returning players from a year ago, Abbey Marra and Ashley Mantooth.

Marra, a 6’1 sophomore, had a very good freshman season, appearing in 32 games and finishing the year as the team’s fourth leading scorer, averaging 8.4 points per game. Marra added 3.9 rebounds per game and hit 65% of her shots from the floor, which is 4th best all-time for a single season in school history.

Mantooth, a 6’2 sophomore, appeared in 32 games for SNU, starting 28 of those games. For the year, Mantooth averaged 7.1 points per game and grabbed 4.8 rebounds per game.

Wrap-Up
The Crimson Storm has a host of talent returning from last year. A year ago, SNU had seven freshman and expectations were for the 08-09 season to be a rebuilding year, but Lori Carter guided SNU to an impressive 24-win season and a return trip to nationals. This year, with the younger players gaining valuable experience last year, the expectation for SNU has been raised a bit as the Storm look to compete for a conference title and look for a lengthier stay at nationals in March.

To view the 2009-10 women's basketball media guide, click here...

2009-10 Media Guide

(KANSAS CITY, MO.)---Southern Nazarene University freshman guard, Logan Martin, and junior forward, Lana Keith, each earned NAIA Third Team All-American honors it was announced by the NAIA on Tuesday evening.