2021
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2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
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Table of contents Message from Mike Marlow, VP for Intercollegiate Athletics....... 4 2021-22 Men’s Basketball Home Schedule................................. 5 2021-22 Men’s Basketball Roster................................................ 6 Print Design & Layout:
Stayson Isobe
2021-22 Men’s Basketball Season Preview................................ 7 2021-22 Women’s Basketball Season Preview........................... 8
NAU Lumberjack Sports Properties:
Todd Wyard, Tyler Carr
2021-22 Women’s Basketball Home Schedule......................... 10
Cover Design:
2021-22 Men’s Basketball Roster...............................................11
Writing & Design Contributors:
More than a Player - Khiarica Rasheed.................................... 13
Garrett Bampos
Garrett Bampos, Cody Bashore, Adrianna Candelaria, Cassandra Hatcher, Stayson Isobe, Izzy Madrid, Kaycee Palmer, Ayleen Pazos
Making the Grades - Men’s Basketball Academics................... 17 Ending on Her Terms - Lauren Orndoff..................................... 18
Photographers:
Simon Asher, Jake Bacon, Cody Bashore, Mason Elliott, Stayson Isobe, Brooks Nuanez, Katie Rapp, Maria Saldivar, Wes Salonen, Michael Wagner, Sam Wasson Printer:
Learfield
No Limits - Ajang Aguek............................................................ 23 Paving the Way - Nik Mains...................................................... 26 Flagstaff’s Own - JJ Nakai......................................................... 30
© 2021 Northern Arizona University Athletics. This publication is an official publication of Northern Arizona University Athletics.
@NAUBasketball @NAU_WBB
Lumberjacks Get Back Into the Community.............................. 34
/NorthernArizonaBasketball /NAUwomensbasketball
@naubasketball @nau_wbb
In-Depth Interviews with coaches, student-athletes, staff and Alumni on NAU AThletics’ new show. 2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK nauathletics.com/timbertalk
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MESSAGE from the Athletic Director
Welcome to the 2021-22 season for Lumberjack Athletics! The journey to this point for our student-athletes, coaches, and staff has been marked by perseverance, determination, commitment, and a steadfast resolve to FINISH the task at hand. Perhaps never in our history has a group of Lumberjack student-athletes been so eager to compete before Skyjacks, fans, friends, and family. My respect and admiration for the time and effort our student-athletes, coaches and staff have put in to prepare for competition has grown exponentially over the past year. Additionally, the collective level of appreciation by everyone within NAU Athletics for our Skyjacks, ticket purchasers and fans is at an all-time high. Together, something special is being built here at NAU and there are far too many to thank individually, so let me just say this . . . when our teams enter the competition arenas this year, please take a moment to realize that your support has made this possible. Take pride in the way they have prepared and intend to perform! GO JACKS! -Mike
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2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
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2021-22 Men’s basketball roster
#0 JAY GREEN
6-5, 200, R-Jr., Guard Sydney, Australia Hillcrest Prep/UNLV
#12 DIEGO CAMPISANO
#13 KEITH HAYMON
6-5, 210, Fr., Forward San Diego, Calif. Torrey Pines HS
6-7, 200, R-So., Forward Cypress, Texas Cypress Ranch HS
#22 WYNTON BROWN
#23 EZEKIEL RICHARDS
6-8, 215, Fr., Forward Carson, Calif. St. John Bosco HS
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#2 AJANG AGUEK
6-8, 190, So., Forward Glendale, Ariz. Ironwood HS
6-10, 230, R-So., Center Oak Park, Calif. Oak Park HS/Santa Clara
#3 JAYDEN JACKSON 6-4, 195, Fr., Guard Milwaukee, Wis. Whitefish Bay HS
#14 ISAIAH LEWIS
6-6, 205, So., Guard Little Elm, Texas Lone Star HS
#24 COLIN CAREY
6-5, 190, Fr., Guard Peoria, Ariz. Sunrise Mountain HS
#4 CARTER MAHANEY 6-2, 175, Fr., Guard Lafayette, Calif. Campolindo HS
#11 MASON STARK
6-2, 170, Jr., Guard Chandler, Ariz. Marcos De Niza HS/Northern State
#15 JALEN CONE
#20 NIK MAINS
5-11, 175, So., Guard Walkertown, N.C. Walkertown HS/Virginia Tech
6-8, 205, R-Jr., Forward Scottsdale, Ariz. Pinnacle HS
#33 CARSON TOWT
#34 SPENCER ROBERTS
6-7, 230, R-Fr., Forward Gilbert, Ariz. Gilbert HS/California Baptist
6-8, 240, Jr., Forward Alberta, Canada Raymond HS/CSI
SHANE BURCAR
TYLER OJANEN
CHRIS FOWLER
JAKE RICCIARDI
ALEXANDRA GREEN
MATT MCCLAUGHRY
Head Coach Fourth Year/Third Year as HC Ottawa, 2004
Assistant Coach Third Year California Baptist, 2004
Assistant Coach Second Year Central Michigan, 2016
Assistant Coach Second Year Memphis, 2016
Director of Basketball Operations First Year Saginaw Valley State, 2016
Graduate Assistant First Year Michigan State, 2019
2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
2021-22 SEASON PREVIEW: Lumberjacks focused on getting the job done
KEITH HAYMON
BY STAYSON ISOBE When the going gets tough, the Northern Arizona men’s basketball team wants to get tougher. If there is one area head coach Shane Burcar wants to see a massive improvement heading into the 2021-22 season, you won’t necessarily directly find it in the box score. “We are not leaving the court without giving it everything we have,” said Burcar, entering his third season as head coach of the Lumberjacks. “We want to dominate teams, and I say that respectfully where we’re not worrying about our opponent or the scoreboard; we’re taking care of each possession. We have to be fierce in our preparation because toughness is getting the job done.” After a 16-14 season – the program’s first winning record in five years – during Burcar’s interim campaign as head coach in 2019-20, the Lumberjacks slipped back to 6-16 a year ago. The COVID-19 pandemic definitely hindered NAU with the Lumberjacks navigating through two shutdowns, but Burcar makes no excuses. Instead the challenges of the 2020-21 sea-
son will only make NAU tougher as it takes the next step in the development of the program under Burcar going into the new year. That toughness that Burcar preaches was seen in March. With a two-week stoppage due to COVID-19 protocols in the rearview mirror, the Lumberjacks returned to action with a four-game stretch against two of the top three teams in the league, Weber State and Southern Utah. NAU suffered four losses, three coming by more than 20 points, but the ‘Jacks were anything but deterred. NAU went up to Boise, Idaho for the Big Sky Tournament and immediately logged a program-building 77-66 first round victory over Portland State – the program’s first conference tournament win in six years. The following night, NAU gave eventual Big Sky champion Eastern Washington its hardest game of the tournament, falling just 66-60 in the quarterfinals. The key in those two games was the Lumberjacks’ defense, which Burcar intends to become a bigger part of their identity. “Defense travels and defense wins championships,” Burcar said. “You may win a couple of games in January because of your offense, but defense wins league titles
and will lead to offense. With our personnel, we will protect the rim better this year. We have to finish possessions, we have to make sure we don’t give up easy baskets in transition and we can’t foul. Defense is that toughness we’re looking far in getting the job done.” The numbers in Boise provide a blueprint of success for NAU. In the two conference tournament games, NAU’s opponent field goal percentage was only 37.6 overall and 23.7 percent behind the arc. That was a far cry from the Lumberjacks’ overall season stats of 50.1 percent and 37.0 percent respectively, but illustrates NAU’s focus on that end of the court. All in all, the attention is on the new season which tips off in Tucson versus Arizona on Tuesday, Nov. 9. When the Lumberjacks take the court that night, they will do so with seven new players on the roster. They will bring more size than the program has seen in years and a steady leadership from redshirt juniors Nik Mains and Jay Green and redshirt sophomore Keith Haymon among a group of eight returners. With a fresh culture and that toughness that the Lumberjacks are looking for, NAU’s stay in Boise in the spring could be a little longer.
2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
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2021-22 SEASON PREVIEW: Armed with Depth, ‘Jacks Aim for Deep March Run
REGAN SCHENCK
BY CODY BASHORE Returning eight of their top nine players from the 2020-21 season while bringing back a pair who missed the whole season, the Northern Arizona women’s basketball team enters the year with their deepest roster ever under head coach Loree Payne. “Right now, we are pretty deep at each position,” Payne said. “It’s still early, so the biggest thing for us is just being able to stay healthy and maintain that depth because I think it could be really, really beneficial for us if we have the ability to go 10, 11, maybe even 12 deep on any given night.” Granted an additional season due to COVID-19’s effect on last year, JJ Nakai, Miki’ala Maio, Khiarica Rasheed and Lauren Orndoff enter their final collegiate season while four newcomers join the program. Freshmen Natalie Greenwood and Fatoumata Jaiteh arrived in Flagstaff during the offseason with transfers Teionni McDaniel and Sierra Mich’l. While Rasheed enters the season ranked fourth all-time in both points and rebounds at Northern Arizona, Nakai and Regan Schenck are coming off two of the better three-point shooting seasons in program history.
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Nakai returns after hitting 38.9 percent from outside, ninth-best for a single season, and an average of 2.24 makes per game, tied for seventh in a season. Schenck’s 43.8 percent shooting, making 35-of-80 in 29 games, finished atop NAU’s single-season list. Nina Radford’s 40.8 percent shooting from 3-point range in 2019-20 also ranks sixth all-time in a season for the Lumberjacks, giving the team three dangerous shooters outside.
Weber State and Idaho State on Dec. 2 and Dec. 4, NAU opens Big Sky Conference play before welcoming in Grand Canyon, Cal Baptist, Cal Poly and Arizona from Dec. 9 to Dec. 17.
Scheck’s shooting in 2020-21 provided just one example of her talent during her breakout season, as the guard also finished with 149 assists last year. The total ranks fourth for a single season, trailing three seasons from Sade Cunningham who holds the alltime assists record for the Lumberjacks.
With their home matchup against the defending champion Idaho State falling in early December followed by the trip to Moscow, the Lumberjacks will take on the top two schools from last season within their first three conference games.
The returning talent will be on display often in Flagstaff this year, with the Lumberjacks hosting 15 games in the 29-game schedule. After traveling north to open the season at Washington State and Washington on Nov. 12 and Nov. 14 respectively, Northern Arizona hosts UNLV at 6 p.m. on Nov. 17 for its home opener. It’ll be the first of seven home contests across an eight-game stretch, with a quick trip to UTEP on Nov. 20 the lone game away from Flagstaff until late December. Hosting
2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
A non-conference finale against UC San Diego caps off the schedule ahead of the holidays on Dec. 21 before Northern Arizona returns to the court on Dec. 30 in Moscow, Idaho against the Vandals.
After hosting Southern Utah on Jan. 8, Northern Arizona makes a quick trip to Sacramento State on Jan. 10 before heading right back to Flagstaff to face Northern Colorado on Jan. 15. Three consecutive road games at Montana State, Montana and Portland State caps off the first half of Big Sky play, with four of the next five games all in Flagstaff between Feb. 3 and Feb. 17. A trip to Idaho State lands on Feb. 24 with the regular season finale coming against Idaho in Flagstaff on March 3.
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HOME SCHEDULE
11/17 12/2 12/4 12/9 1/15
2/3 2/10 2/12
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12/13 12/17 1/8
12/11 2/17
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2021-22 woMen’s basketball roster
#1 REGAN SCHENCK 5-7, Jr., Guard Woodinville, Wash. Woodinville HS
5-11, Fr., Guard/Forward Riverside, Calif. King HS
5-7, Sr., Guard Flagstaff, Ariz. Coconino HS/Pima CC/Nevada
#3 JJ NAKAI
#5 NATALIE GREENWOOD
#11 TEIONNI MCDANIEL
#13 SIERRA MICH’L
#14 MIKI’ALA MAIO
#15 KHIARICA RASHEED
#20 LAUREN ORNDOFF
#21 EMILY RODABAUGH
#24 SANJANA RAMESH
#30 NINA RADFORD
#42 FATOUMATA JAITEH
#50 SENTIA BRYANT
6-1, R-So., Forward Las Vegas, Nev. Desert Oasis HS/Pima CC
#22 OLIVIA MORAN
5-11, Fr., Guard/Forward Riverside, Calif. King HS
#2 NYAH MORAN
5-9, Sr., Guard Nanakuli, Hawaii Kamehameha HS/Nevada
6-0, So., Forward Bangalore, Karnataka, India Delhi Public School Bangalore
5-11, Sr., Forward Portland, Ore. Grant HS
6-0, R-Jr., Guard Portland, Ore. Grant HS/UC Santa Barbara
6-2, Fr., Forward Roanoke, Texas Byron Nelson HS
5-10, Sr., Guard Medford, Ore. South Medford HS
6-1, Fr., Forward Lynnwood, Wash. Meadowdale HS
5-9, R-Fr., Guard Las Vegas, Nev. Centennial HS/Hawai’i
6-0, So., Guard/Forward Lynnwood, Wash. Archbishop Murphy HS
6-1, R-So., Forward Mesa, Ariz. Desert Ridge HS
LOREE PAYNE
KELLEE BARNEY
JENNY THIGPIN
OLIVIA LUCERO
ALEXIS BESINAIZ
PEYTON KOHNKE
Head Coach Fifth Year Washington, 2003
Assistant Coach Fifth Year Idaho, 1984
Assistant Coach Fourth Year Fresno State, 2007
Assistant Coach Second Year Northern Arizona, 2017
Director of Basketball Operations First Year UNLV, 2015
Graduate Assistant First Year Northern Arizona, 2021
2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
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MORE THAN A PLAYER Within reach of NAU’s all-time scoring and rebounding records, Khiarica Rasheed focused on much more By Izzy Madrid Over the past four years, Khiarica Rasheed has grown into an exceptional leader on and off the court for the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks. Through those four seasons, Rasheed has recorded 1,423 points, 731 rebounds and 366 free throws made to rank among the team’s best in its nearly 47-year history. Due to COVID-19 and the NCAA’s decision to grant basketball athletes an additional year of eligibility, Rasheed decided to return for another season and now has the chance to reset some of the program’s records. However, there’s something else Rasheed has her eyes on this year. “I am looking forward to winning,” she said about this upcoming season. Injured at the beginning of last season, having undergone multiple surgeries amidst the uncertainty of the pandemic, Rasheed said that she is now ready to get back on the court with her team and get a chance to earn a Big Sky Championship. “Getting a small taste junior year of getting close to almost being there, and I feel like our team is good enough to do that again,” Rasheed said.
really buy into what it’s like to be a Division I basketball player,” Rasheed said. “I just want to be able to be healthy. Last year with COVID, plus me having surgery as well, everything felt rushed and not set in stone ever.” Having an explosive junior year statistically, Rasheed also feels she grew intellectually. Saying she is proud to be a leader on her team, Rasheed prides herself in continuing to push not only herself but also her teammates. As for on the court, she has made more of a dedication to studying the game. “When I first got here, I didn’t know how to shoot the basketball,” Rasheed said. “Now, I’m perfectly confident shooting the ball and my mindset is different. I’ve always liked watching basketball, but now it’s more intense. I have a WNBA League pass and I’m intentional about watching or being on the sidelines, really intentional about watching what I see on the court and passing the little nuggets here and there to my teammates because they look to me for certain things as well.” The improvement showed on the court, with Rasheed shooting 47.2 percent from three-point range as a junior after hitting just 5-of-17 from outside in her first two seasons. Similarly, Rasheed went from shooting 43.9 percent her first two seasons to 48.6 percent.
In 2020, the team reached the Big Sky Conference Tournament and reached the semifinal against No. 1-seed Montana State. While the Lumberjacks fell 7671, a win would have still led to disappointment as the NCAA canceled all sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic just one day later.
Her development over the past few years has helped Rasheed better understand her role as a leader and strives to push her teammates.
“We just need to put all of our pieces together and
During her time at NAU, she has become a leader of Athletes for Social Alliance and makes a point to continue to educate. Over the past year, Rasheed took
Rasheed also recognized that her leadership on the court is also just as valuable off it. Dating back to high school, she has been very involved in her community. She coins herself as a natural leader and an activist.
2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
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the initiative to start a book club with her teammates as they read several books about race and culture. “It is important as a leader to immerse in different people’s cultures as well,” Rasheed said. “I think I take that to heart and find that very important. You know we’re all here for a certain time, so why not learn more about each other.” Though her leadership and activism off the court is a key focus to her time at Northern Arizona, Rasheed also reminisced about the chances of breaking records and making history on the court. “It’s an honor. I never thought that I would be in a position to break records,” Rasheed said. “I feel like in my head I said, ‘I could get 1,000 points,’ but it never was ‘Oh, I’ll get it in my junior year like that fast.’ After I thought to myself, ‘This is interesting’.” Rasheed explained that she has always had an underdog mentality. The mindset has helped her accomplish many small goals that have eventually given her the chance to break records at NAU and
the opportunity to continue playing beyond college. After this year, Rasheed said that she is hopeful of playing overseas. This idea has not always been a goal of hers, but once she began playing at NAU, she realized the opportunities she had to continue playing. Additionally, seeing her former teammates play overseas helped inspire her to go after that opportunity. “Throughout junior year, and seeing my performance and all the work that I put in to grow each year,” she said. “I’m a different player now than I was when I first got here, and I can just see that blossoming more and more as I continue to play. I’m looking forward to seeing myself continue to grow overseas. That is my first stop.” Overall, Rasheed said she is proud of her growth throughout the past four years and is looking forward to being confident on the court and giving it her all in her final year. “I’m just going to play,” she said. “I’m going to play and let the cards fall.”
“It is important as a leader to immerse in different people’s cultures as well. I think I take that to heart and find that very important. You know we’re all here for a certain time, so why not learn more about each other.” - Khiarica Rasheed
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MAKING
THE GRADES
BY AYLEEN PAZOS
Throughout the last couple of years, there has been great change in the Northern Arizona men’s basketball team not only on the court but also off of it. The development and improvement these players have done is something really remarkable. Head coach Shane Burcar is entering his third season and has had a great impact on this program with a focus on more than just the game. He wants to see his players succeed in areas beyond the court and when looking at the numbers, the Lumberjacks are doing just that. From the GPAs to the APR numbers, the men’s basketball program has really been putting in the time and effort. “As someone who coached at the high school level for so long, that change in culture is so beneficial for a college program,” said Burcar, who previously coached at Mesa High School. “I brought the values
that I have had over the years and in this program, we want you to do your work and put in an A effort.” When recruiting individuals, Burcar wants to bring in not only high caliber athletes, who are good players, but also students. He wants them to be able to reach all of their goals. “I do not want players that have been here for four years and say I lived in Gabaldon, I lived in Pine Ridge Village. I went to two NCAA Tournaments and I don’t have a degree,” Burcar said. There is a focus on every recruit that joins the NAU program. Before starting, a recruit sits down with part of the staff, who will help them with aspects like degrees that they want to go into, classes, scheduling and other aspects that will help them with their transition. Burcar wants to make sure that those recruits and the players in his program get the complete student-athlete experience when joining the team. With the help of Jessica Lopez, the Associate Athletic Director for Academics, the Lumberjacks’ success in the classroom has seen an increase during each of Burcar’s first two years. “It’s very rare for a men’s basketball team to have a cumulative GPA of a 3.0 and it has to do a lot with the communication between the head coach and the people in charge of academics,” said Lopez, who has worked with the men’s bas-
ketball team since joining the NAU Athletics Department last June. “Each week Coach Burcar comes in and ask for test scores, grades and how players are doing in class and he holds his athletes accountable. This has corrected many issues that the team previously had.” In Burcar’s interim season as head coach in 2019-20, the team’s GPA for the year was 2.97, up from 2.89 the year prior. Last year, the team’s GPA jumped up again to 3.09, the second-highest single-year GPA since the 2005-06 academic year. The Academic Progress Rate (APR) numbers have reached a high as well. The program’s single-year APR for the 2019-20 year was a perfect 1000, which was the best mark they have had since the 2009-10 school year. Overall, the men’s basketball team’s improvement has been great the last three years. Not only are the student-athletes getting good grades, but the program also has a diverse amount of degrees being studied. This is due to the amount of communications between the players and staff. Burcar and Lopez have been able to place students in areas that are better for them and that actually interest them, allowing the student-athletes to enjoy what they are doing and focus on their studies. “Having a more suitable major as well as classes is a determining factor to the success of the players,” Lopez said. NAU Athletics provides tutoring for their student-athletes and there has been an increase among the men’s basketball players. As a result, player eligibility has increased due to their attendance. The commitment to academics that Burcar has added to this program has created a positive movement for his players and with his help and support of the staff from NAU Basketball, the program will continue seeing growth with their players flourishing in many ways.
2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
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ENDING ON
Her
TERMS By Stayson Isobe Inactive and on the bench last season, there were no guarantees that Lauren Orndoff would ever don the Lumberjack uniform again. Then she remembered six key words of advice. “One of my good friends gave me advice of ‘don’t stop playing until you can’t,’” Orndoff said. “For everything I’ve been through here, I owed it to myself to keep playing and to end on the terms I want.” There were no guarantees that Orndoff would have already made a return once. Not after the road to recovery she had already traveled down, battling back from her self-described lowest point. So “don’t stop playing until you can’t” lived in her mind, and Orndoff will in fact give it one final go-around. A year ago, every student-athlete across the country had to decide if competing during the COVID-19 pandemic was the right choice for them. However, with the uncertainty surrounding the 2020-21 season and how it would be affected by the pandemic, the risk was not worth it for Orndoff. “It was a decision I had to make for myself.” Orndoff said. “It was hard because I wanted to play and I’m sure everyone can relate to wanting things to be normal. It simply wasn’t though and I couldn’t change that. It was hard at the time because there weren’t a lot of protocols in place yet, there wasn’t a plan for vaccines and for what the season would look like so I felt I didn’t have enough information to make the decision to play.” To fully understand Orndoff’s decision is to know what she’s been through. Midway through her sophomore season, Orndoff, now entering her fifth year as a member of the Northern Arizona women’s basketball program, experienced spontaneous pneumothorax, which caused her lung to collapse. Given the respiratory effects of COVID-19, Orndoff’s decision was the smart one, as difficult as it was. However, as difficult as that decision was, it pales in comparison to her journey back to the court in the first place. Orndoff’s career could look a lot different right now. The potential was there. Sitting at 580 career points prior to the start of the 2021-22 season, Orndoff could
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There was getting back to walking, then progressing to jogging and eventually running. Weightlifting was restricted to body weight, and that was before Orndoff ever thought about dribbling a basketball again. “The hardest part was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel,” Orndoff said. “I had withdrawn from school and I wasn’t playing basketball. Things that were part of my regular routine were no longer there and things that I liked to do outside of school and basketball were no longer there as well. Basketball was out of the picture during that entire process and as much as it broke my heart, I wanted to get my health back and we started with baby steps.” Once the baby steps were cleared, Orndoff was given the green light to return to basketball activities at a pace that she was comfortable with. What followed was a return that was nothing short of triumphant. In her first game back, she netted 14 points on the road at New Mexico in the 2019-20 opener. She followed that with a then career-high 20 points on 7-of-8 shooting in a win against Seattle. The Medford, Ore. native would go on to start all 31 games for the Lumberjacks that year, averaging 9.0 points per game during NAU’s first winning season in 13 years. “I like to call her our silent assassin,” said head coach Loree Payne. “She can very quietly put up 20 on any given night. The challenges that she’s faced over the last two years has put her in a position where leadership-wise she’s grown. It’s helped her maintain a neutral mindset and not get too high or too low. She suits up and goes to work.” have easily crossed the illustrious 1,000 point threshold already. Coming to NAU after a stellar prep career at South Medford High School in Oregon, Orndoff started 20 games as a true freshman. Orndoff flashed that potential early, including in a 16-point performance in NAU’s historic victory over Arizona that year. But it wasn’t until her second year that Orndoff really took off, until she was derailed. In warmups prior to the Lumberjacks’ home game against Southern Utah on Jan. 12, 2019, Orndoff experienced chest pains that she initially dismissed as something as simple as heart burn. Despite the discomfort, Orndoff fought through it playing 22 minutes in the overtime loss, only for an x-ray to reveal her collapsed lung. “It was really frustrating because my freshman year was a lot of learning experiences, getting used to the flow of the game, the speed and physicality of college basketball and that sophomore year I gained a lot of confidence and understood the game better,” Orndoff said. “It felt like it was going to be a breakout season for me so it was disheartening that this thing that was out of my control was happening.” Not to be lost in the bigger picture, Orndoff was in the midst of the best stretch of her career, averaging 15.3 points while hitting 21-of41 from the field and connecting on 8-of-16 behind the arc in the four games prior to that Southern Utah contest. A breakout seemed imminent, only for an unexpected detour. What followed was the long recovery back. Orndoff withdrew from school and went through a couple of procedures uncommon for her age group, let alone her specific demographic as a healthy female student-athlete. She was stuck in the ICU, and then was confined to her home.
As strong as her season started, Orndoff’s finish was just as impressive as she averaged 15.5 points per game at the 2020 conference tournament to close her junior season. She appeared poised for an even bigger senior season, that would also include high aspirations for the Lumberjacks as a whole coming off an appearance in the Big Sky semifinals. But as it would turn out, the Lumberjacks’ semifinal loss to top-seeded Montana State on March 11, 2020 was the last bit of normalcy before the pandemic shut everything down. The very next day, the Big Sky Conference, like so many other leagues, canceled the remainder of their tournaments. The next time anyone stepped out on the court, cardboard cutouts and masks were present everywhere you looked. Following her decision to sit out the season, Orndoff was an observer during NAU’s second consecutive winning campaign, ending with a postseason berth in the WBI. Through it all, Orndoff contemplated her future as she was set to graduate last spring with her bachelor’s degree in psychology.
“She’s continued to battle every day despite the things that have been out of her control. She is so tough. I admire her a ton and I feel very fortunate to be able to coach her in her last year.” - Loree Payne
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But here she is, playing the sport because she still can and this is where Orndoff’s story picks up. It’s yet another return to play and more importantly, another chance to end her career the way she wants to. “I just want to enjoy it,” Orndoff said. “It would be great to have a winning season and to win a Big Sky Championship. Obviously that’s the goal every day at practice. But in regards to everything here with school and my friends and basketball, I want to embrace it all and be present with people I’m interacting with because that’s how I’ll get the most out of it.” “She could’ve ended last year, graduated and carried on with her life, but this program meant a lot to her and she wanted to finish strong,” Payne added. “She’s continued to battle every day despite the things that have been out of her control. She is so tough. I admire her a ton and I feel very fortunate to be able to coach her in her last year.” In addition to preparing for her final season as a Lumberjack, Orndoff is currently working towards her master’s degree in communication as well as interning with NAU Athletics’ Marketing and Fan Engagement team. Her journey has been anything but ideal, but Orndoff is grateful for it all. “I’m thankful that it happened because it gave me a lot of new perspective on things outside of basketball and made me realize that life is a lot bigger than the game of basketball,” Orndoff said. “I’ve been at my lowest point and I can only go up. I’m really thankful to be here and I’m super grateful for the coaching staff, my teammates and my trainers. Honestly, my entire journey wasn’t near what I expected it to be, but I honestly wouldn’t change it for the world. It’s been some of the greatest four or five years of my life.”
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No Limits
AJANG AGUEK REALIZING FULL POTENTIAL ON AND OFF THE COURT BY ADRIANNA CANDELARIA Listed at 6-8, Northern Arizona junior Ajang Aguek certainly stands out in a crowd. However, his stature was not the only factor that caught men’s basketball head coach Shane Burcar’s attention. “The first time I saw Ajang, I loved his passion and how hard he played,” Burcar said, “He had great energy and he’s just someone you want to build a program with.” Aguek, a First Team All-District honoree and team captain at Ironwood High School in Glendale, Ariz., averaged 14 points and eight rebounds during his four-year career. He was also selected as Ironwood’s Most Improved Player and participated in the Arizona Top 250 Showcase. Although Burcar was bought in from the very beginning, he was still only an assistant coach at NAU during Aguek’s final year at Ironwood. Without the ability to make executive decisions regarding recruitment, nevertheless, Burcar continued to keep in contact with Aguek. With dreams of becoming a collegiate athlete since picking up a basketball in seventh grade, Aguek’s current academic standing seemed to be the only obstacle in his midst. “I thought I might end up at a community college, because my grades in high school were just not where they were supposed to be,” Aguek said. While any other coach might have found his grades slightly concerning, Burcar was willing to overlook this speed bump because of his confidence in Aguek’s work ethic. “My background is coaching high school, and you can always see those guys who might struggle academically because the resources simply aren’t there,” Burcar explained. “The hard work is what kept my mind going with him”. After communicating with the Ironwood forward for about two years, Burcar convinced former head coach Jack Murphy to invite Aguek up to Flagstaff on an unofficial visit. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Burcar, Murphy was finalizing plans to accept a position as the associate head coach at Arizona. From the outside looking in, Aguek had a strong showing during the team workout, but, after the fact, Aguek admitted it was a bit of a struggle. “I was dying and I didn’t know why I was so out of breath until they told me about the elevation,” Aguek said. Following the practice, Murphy approached Burcar to discuss Aguek’s performance.
Exuding excitement, Burcar expressed his keen interest in signing Aguek, and received permission from Murphy to officially offer Aguek a scholarship and a spot on the team. In June of 2019, approximately 48 hours after Aguek’s acceptance, Burcar was named interim head coach in place of Murphy for the upcoming season, and after a successful interim campaign, was appointed the permanent head coach. During Aguek’s freshman year with the Lumberjacks he appeared in 25 games, totaling 43 points, 21 rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks in 141 minutes of action. In limited action – just under six minutes per game, he averaged 1.7 points and nearly a rebound in each matchup. In his NAU debut on Nov. 15, 2019 against SAGU American Indian College, Aguek scored a personal best 12 points and had four rebounds. Several months later, Aguek also tied his career high of seven rebounds against conference competitor, Northern Colorado, additionally putting up seven points, two assists, and one block. However, a special memory of Aguek’s is the comeback win over Montana in his first season with the ‘Jacks.
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“He guarded their best player on the team for the last seven minutes of the game and helped us beat Montana,” Burcar explained. “That’s his role, he’s just a hustle player.”
wellness and a two-time Golden Eagle Scholar-Athlete Award recipient in each of his first two years, it is evident that Aguek is just as determined on and off the court.
Playing defense is one of the most exciting aspects of the game for Aguek.
“His GPA is higher in college than it was in high school, and I think that just tells you about his character,” Burcar applauded.
“I think I’m an all-around player, but defense is a really big part of my game, Aguek said. “It’s really fun and it just feels like I’m in control. I always want to rebound really hard, make great reads and play great defense.”
The new, nearly completed, Student-Athlete High Performance Center will serve as a supplemental tool for student-athletes as well. With an anticipated completion of December, the state-of-theart facility will feature academic resources, specifically designed to further assist all of NAU’s student-athletes in scholarly success.
While it is a team sport that continues to unite people, Aguek also finds joy in the individuality of basketball where athletes can choose to work independently. He, for example, consistently trains both alone and with the team in order to maintain his forward momentum. “He is such a hard worker and he has never stopped playing hard,” Burcar described. “Playing hard is a skill. It’s a skill that people don’t talk about.” As a sophomore, Aguek appeared in 21 games and started in three, totaling 72 points, 45 rebounds, eight assists, three steals and nine blocks in 286 minutes of action. His minutes per game more than doubled to 13.5, and his per game averages also saw a jump to 3.4 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. Aguek also averaged 9.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in two conference tournament games last March. “Since becoming part of this team I have learned that body language is a big deal and your body language can determine a lot in a game,” Aguek added. “Your mindset is important to your performance too.”
Overall, Aguek has certainly proved himself in a multitude of challenges, and praises Burcar for never letting off the gas when it comes to training. “Coach Burcar and I are pretty close. He coaches me hard and I accept his coaching,” Aguek said. Heading into his third year, Aguek looks forward to the rapidly approaching season, with the Lumberjack team depth and skill constantly in the back of his mind. Aguek’s commitment, consistency and drive have already carried him a great distance, and will only continue to develop him into an even more complete student-athlete. “He’s talented, and there’s a lot of talented guys out there, but talent is a little bit overrated,’’ Burcar expressed. “Give me the guy that works hard versus the guy that just thinks he’s good. You write books about guys that are talented and work hard”.
He explained that he places high importance on his ability to uplift his teammates, no matter the circumstances, and providing a calming, reassuring presence in unfavoring game situations. At the end of the day, his goal is to win while having fun. In his time at NAU, Aguek has not only developed athletically, but academically as well. “I struggled in high school, but NAU offers the tutoring and help I need at the Health and Learning Center,” Aguek said. “I usually go to the HLC twice a week.” Now a 3.0 student studying health science-fitness
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For all of your gameday essentials including rosters, stats and more, check out NAU Athletics’ official digital gameday program! only available at nauathletics.com/publications
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PAVING THE WAY From walk-on to fifth-year senior, Nik Mains has turned himself into cornerstone of men’s basketball program
By Cassandra Hatcher Coming to Northern Arizona University, Nik Mains knew what he wanted to accomplish from the start. The 6-8 Arizona native entered the men’s basketball program as a walk-on freshman in 2017, when he redshirted. “I was obviously nervous, with it being my first time here and first time being without my family and seeing everyone so there was nerves there but everyone was welcoming and really helped me get through everything,” Mains said. “I’ve had some hard times but my ultimate goal was to make sure I get a scholarship and get better every single day. With my teammates and the coaching staff it worked out perfectly for me.” Mains didn’t let others opinions stray his journey at NAU, and with the help of his coaches and teammates, he kept working towards what he had always dreamt of – a scholarship. In January of 2019, early on after his redshirt year as a freshman, Mains watched his goals come in clear reach and received his scholarship papers from former head coach Jack Murphy alongside his teammates. “It was very special. When it happened, Luke (Avdalovic) also got one and he was a longtime teammate of mine so it was just a super special moment. My teammates were hyping me up and it was just an awesome experience,” Mains said. At the time of receiving the scholarship, current head coach Shane Burcar was a firstyear assistant coach on Murphy’s staff, and witnessed Mains’ hard work pay off. “The reason you get into coaching is to help or be a positive influence on your players and everybody on campus. But you’re with your players every day, so someone like Nik, he prepped one year and never asked for anything and Coach Murphy never gave any guarantees so it made it even more significant,” Burcar said. “Just to see their faces and the hits on social media, that emotion when that happened, that was real emotion. It makes you feel good. You work
hard and you’re gonna get something from it.” Throughout that season, Mains appeared in all 31 games for the ‘Jacks, further proving he had earned his scholarship and deserved to be on the court in the blue and gold uniform. Mains averaged 15.4 minutes per game, along with 4.9 points and 1.9 rebounds off the bench. Finding most of his success from behind the three-point line, he totaled 151 points, 59 rebounds, 10 assists, 14 steals, and 11 blocks in his 478 minutes of action throughout the season, and he was just getting started. Putting in work in the offseason, Mains began to showcase his player development during the 2019-20 season. Mains saw time on the court in all 30 games for the Lumberjacks, earning the start in 14. He recorded his first career double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds in just 19 minutes of play against SAGU American Indian College. He recorded six double-digit games, while shooting 47.6 percent from the field and 36 percent from three-point range. After his redshirt sophomore season, Mains turned the heat all the way up heading into the 2020-21 season. With a season nine games shorter than the average due to COVID-19 protocols, the stretch forward impressed all with a clear improvement in overall skillset and ball control, making his name known in and out of the paint. “He scores from three levels of the court, and the other thing if you look at the analytics, he is one of our best defensive players,” Burcar said. “When we went on that fivegame winning streak in 19-20, he started those five games. He’s one of those guys, if he’s not scoring he’s still helping you win games.” Starting 13 out of the 21 games in his fourth season with the team, and recording a total of 506 minutes of action, Mains made a point in showing off his hard work. Transitioning from a shooter who took most of his chances outside the arc and off offensive rebounds to a versatile scorer who was
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more than the 32 three-pointers he made last season was not an easy switch. Mains credits communication with his teammates and working on what he knew his team needed from him. “The coaches definitely helped me. I also wanted to get better and improve on things over the years that I’ve been here,” Mains said. “I’ve been trying to get into the gym and work out with coaches and on my own but just focusing on making a skillset that fits in with the team.” Coming out of the 2020-21 season and losing some key offensive shooters, many are putting the Lumberjacks under a microscope with the question of who will step up for the team this season. Mains notes that the team chemistry and point of emphasis is to come together for wins. As a veteran, he has stepped into a new role as a leader for the younger guys, just as his older teammates once did for him. “I’m just trying to teach the younger guys how and what to do in certain situations, what to look for on certain plays and just give them motivation like the older people did for me when I was new here,” Mains said. “I’m just trying to make sure they’re comfortable and can play with a skillset that they are capable of.” Heading into his fourth season on the court, and fifth season overall, Mains has the opportunity to display yet another year of growth coming out of the offseason. With nine new players on the roster and eight returners, the team has utilized the offseason to build trust and get to know each other on the court. “I think the team chemistry has improved a lot,” Mains said. “It’s awesome that we are able to be this close and it really will show on the floor when we’re working together and cheering for each other. Togetherness and trying to win. That’s what the ultimate goal is so we’re just trying to be out here and play to the best of our ability and do it as a family.”
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Flagstaff’s Own JJ Nakai excited for opportunity to finally play in front of friends and family BY CODY BASHORE It’s been quite the wait for JJ Nakai’s family to see the NAU senior play in Flagstaff as she did for four years at Coconino High School.
like we’re literally here almost every game and then couldn’t come in.”
While Nakai transferred to Northern Arizona ahead of the 2020-21 season, she did so as crowds were kept home from games with the COVID-19 pandemic presenting a significant challenge as the season began. However, the pandemic plagued season did allow Nakai, who was granted a waiver to play immediately after arriving from Nevada more than a year ago, an extra season with the Lumberjacks.
Feeling so close, and yet still so far removed from Nakai’s return to the local basketball scene, the senior’s family did make the trek out to the Big Sky Conference Tournament in Boise, Idaho where a limited number of fans were allowed to be in attendance.
Now she enters her final colligate season with a year of experience in NAU head coach Loree Payne’s system and will welcome her family and friends to catch her games in Flagstaff just as they did back in 2017 as she landed All-State honors to go along with three All-Region honors and a pair of Arizona Daily Sun Player of the Year awards during her time with the Panthers. “They were like ‘Okay, is there a way you can sneak us in’ and I was like no! There’s no way you can get in,” Nakai said with a laugh. “I think it was just more of just annoying on their part because they
Nakai treated them with a 19-point performance against the Weber State Wildcats, hitting 5-of-10 from three-point range in the first round of the tournament. While the frustration could be understood by anyone, especially after she spent three seasons away from Flagstaff between her time at Pima Community College and Nevada, the lighter side of the circumstances included a return to childhood for Nakai. Living at home now that she was back in town, Nakai transported to some games with the assistance of her family. Rolling up to Rolle Activity Center, Nakai hopped out of the car and waved goodbye just like her youth basketball days.
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THANK YOU TO OUR SKYJACKS MEMBERS
to view a list of our skyjacks members, visit: www.nauteambehindtheteams.com 30 2021-22 NORTHERN ARIZONA MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL YEARBOOK
“I didn’t really have like a parking pass or anything, so they would be the ones dropping me off here before games,” Nakai said. “It was like oh my god, this kind of reminds me of when I was in high school and it’s just like when they dropped me off. I kind of just thought it was just a funny little flashback.” At times, Nakai’s first season as a Lumberjack resembled her previous time playing in Flagstaff. The scoring prowess was consistently on display with 18 double-digit scoring games and the ninth most three-pointers made in a single season. At 13.6 points per game, leading the Lumberjacks, and 2.24 three-pointers made per contest, Nakai earned Big Sky Newcomer of the Year honors and landed All-Big Sky Honorable Mention honors.
‘Oh my god, you play at NAU now, we’re coming to the game,” Nakai said. “All my friends and family especially, they’re always like ‘Oh, are we going to be able to be able to go into the games now’ and stuff like that, so I’m just excited because I think there’s definitely going to be like a lot of people there at the games. A lot of my supporters that I have here in Flag and nearby us like in Phoenix and the Navajo Nation. So, I’m definitely excited.” There will be plenty of opportunities, with Northern Arizona hosting 15 of its 29 games during the regular season. After opening the home schedule against UNLV on Nov. 17, the Lumberjacks play six more games at home before the new year.
From their Big Sky Conference opener against Weber State on Dec. 2 through the Dec. 17 showdown with the NCAA runner-up Arizona Wildcats, Northern Arizona will play six straight in Flagstaff. Also “I’ve never been able to play there. All the among the early opporevents I went to when I was younger were in tunities to see Nakai? the Skydome ... I’m personally just excited A NJCAA Division II Hosting in-state rival because i’ve had the experience of it. First Team All-American Grand Canyon on Dec. for the Aztecs, Nakai 9, as well as the defendwon the ACCAC Player of the Year award and it was just kind of like it was always in ing Big Sky Conference Regular Season twice while setting program records in the dome, Nakai said. “I’m personally just and Tournament champion Idaho State points (1,397) and assists (442). While the excited because I’ve never had the expe- Bengals on Dec. 4. path back to Flagstaff became a reality last rience of it.” season, there’s still a few firsts for Nakai in Nakai’s hope is everyone will also see an Once Nakai’s Skydome debut is a reality, even more comfortable player, admitting her hometown. her hope is many more will pack the build- her first season in Flagstaff was not without With both of Northern Arizona’s basketball ing as well. Games between Coconino and challenges at times. Missing both games teams spending their entire seasons in its crosstown Flagstaff High School packed against Idaho midway through the season Rolle Activity Center last year, as the foot- both high school gyms as Nakai shined not and both meetings with Southern Utah to ball season slid into the spring and occu- too long ago. With the following still pres- conclude the regular season, Nakai worked pied the Walkup Skydome, Nakai has still ent as ever, simply take a look at the inter- through a few periods of being less than yet to play a game in the Lumberjacks’ reg- actions with Nakai related posts on NAU 100 percent. Women’s Basketball’s social media, she ular home. hopes to see many familiar faces in the After somewhat of a lost season with the “I’ve never been able to play there. All the crowd this season. Wolfpack, the additional season with the events I went to when I was younger were Lumberjacks offers somewhat of a mulligan in the Skydome, I would come to games “Even just me like going around town, I’ve on her initial junior season. If you consider had random people come up to me like While minutes were scarce the year prior in Reno, Nakai displayed the talent many knew she had as she graduated from Coconino and shined in Tucson as Pima Community College.
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last year a do-over while working her way into a new program, Nakai’s prospects for 2021-22 bode well as the Lumberjacks enter the year deeper than they were a year ago and hope to look a bit more balanced. Playing 31.6 minutes per game last season, Nakai should be surrounded by multiple shooters to balance out Northern Arizona’s offense. Just like Nakai’s 38.9 percent from last season, Nina Radford (40.8 percent) and Regan Schenck (43.8 percent) also hold top-10 three-point percentage seasons while Khiarica Rasheed returns in pursuit of the program’s all-time scoring record and Emily Rodabaugh set a program record by hitting six three-pointers without a miss against Montana. Announcing her transfer from Nevada to Northern Arizona in April 2020, and then being prevented from a typical offseason leading into last fall, Nakai has now been allowed a much more normal run of preparation for this season. “I was just going to have one year and I was definitely stressing about it, but I’m excited because I have a better grasp of the whole system, the coaches and I know everybody better,” Nakai said. “It’s just kind of like, it feels like I’m not so rushed if that makes sense.”
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LUMBERJACKS GET BACK INTO THE COMMUNITY The COVID-19 pandemic forced a lot of change, but after a year without the usual interaction we were all accustomed to, the Northern Arizona men’s and women’s basketball teams are reintegrating themselves into the community. The Lumberjack women’s basketball team hosted a couple of clinics at the Boys & Girls Club of Flagstaff in the month of September, while the men’s basketball program has joined up with local elementary schools for virtual readings throughout the fall.
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