Aaron Walling / Sun Star
Women’s Basketball
Kaillee Skjold scores an easy lay-up towards the end of the second half to lead all players with 23 points for the night. She had 11 rebounds for a second-straight double-double. Savanna Burke/Sun Star Photo credit: Savanna Burke
The Nanooks women’s basketball team opened the season undefeated against the PacWest teams. The Nanooks poured on the points against the Academy of Art Urban Knights and the California State University-LA Golden Eagles, combining for 168 points in the two matches.
“We had a great turnout tonight from our fans, first and foremost! We had great performances by our seniors, Jordan [Wilson] and Kaillee [Skjold] were top-notch,” Head Coach Cody Bench said following Friday’s game.
Another double-digit holder of the night with a perfect 4-4 from the three-point line, Jaylee Mays scrambles after a loose ball before being cornered. Savanna Burke/Sun Star Photo credit: Savanna Burke
The Nanooks offense was sharp over the weekend, as the seniors on the team set the tone. Senior Autumn Childers opened up the three point shooting for the team, as she knocked down six threes and played excellent defense on the opposing guards. The Nanooks won by 24 points against the Knights with a score of 93-69 using the three point shot to pad the lead.
The Nanooks haven’t started 2-0 on the season since 2014. They also showed their bench will be a force in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. They have, in the past, struggled to generate points from the bench, but now they are led by senior Jaylee Mays as they try to move the team into the GNAC tournament for the first time under Bench.
The Nanooks look to their next match against Colorado State University-Pueblo on Nov. 18 in Colorado.
Senior forward, Kaillee Skjold gives the Nanooks an early possession after a sky high tip off in the women’s basketball season opening game against the Academy of Art. Savanna Burke/Sun Star Photo credit: Savanna Burke
Swim Team
The Nanooks lost to the Concordia-Irvine Eagles in a tough swim meet. After tying on Friday, the team couldn’t keep up with the Eagles on Saturday.
The Nanooks will be heading to face the Huskies of Washington in the Husky Invitational. So with their match against the Eagles, they were looking to fine tune their events for the invitational.
Martha Hood, junior, dives into her lane during the 200 Yard Individual Medley, a race in which athletes swim one lap in each of the four different swimming strokes: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle. Ellamarie Quimby/Sun Star Photo credit: Ellamarie Quimby
“We’re only a couple of weeks away from our biggest meet of the fall, where every swim counts, so this seemed like it was our chance to vary our line-up a little bit in different events.” Head Coach Scott Lemley said.
With the loss on Saturday, 92-113, their record is now (2-3-1). Their record might not reflect some of the individual successes they had. The team continued their dominance in events like the 200 medley relay, the 400 medley relay and 200-yard freestyle. With the 400 medley relay, the Nanooks were led by junior Martha Hood and senior Victoria Adams as they took first over the Eagles on Friday, nearly beating the competition by a full five seconds.
Senior Nga Nguyen was one of three UAF athletes competing in the 100 Yard Breaststroke even. Nguyen secured first place with a time of 1:07.20, 1.10 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Jessica Wilson of Concordia University. Ellamarie Quimby/Sun Star Photo credit: Ellamarie Quimby
The Nanooks go on a few weeks rest as they prepare for the Husky Invitational in early December.