SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Lianna Tillman led a trio of Hornets in double figures as she poured in 21 points in Sacramento State's 68-57 loss to Northern Arizona on Monday night at The Nest.

The win improved the Lumberjacks to 7-6 overall and 4-1 in Big Sky Conference games while the Hornets dropped to 4-9 overall and 0-4 in league play.

NAU never trailed in the contest building a 21-11 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Hornets rallied at the start of the second quarter to draw within three, 23-20, but were outscored 11-5 over the final seven minutes. During that stretch, all five points came from Summer Menke but the team did not have a field goal for the final 2:49 of the period.

After a back-to-back baskets from Tillman pulled Sacramento State within seven early in the third quarter, NAU responded with an 8-0 run midway through the period to lead 48-33. The Lumberjacks then ended the quarter on a 6-0 run to take a 20-point advantage (58-38) into the fourth quarter.

The Hornets outscored the Lumberjacks, 19-10, in the final 10 minutes, limiting NAU to 4-of-12 shooting, while making 7-of-13 of their own field goals. Isnelle Natabou's three-point play drew the team within 11 with 2:23 to play and Sacramento State got the ball back following a travel violation on NAU. However, Natabou was whistled for an illegal screen on the ensuing position negating a chance to cut the deficit to single digits.

Tillman scored 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting to give her her fourth 20 point game of the year. She also ranked second on the team with three assists and was third with five rebounds. Natabou was an efficient 5-of-8 from the floor and 1-of-1 from the stripe for 11 points. The freshman has now been in double figures in four consecutive games. Natabou tied Nina Barry for the team high with six reboinds. Menke added 10 points and three rebounds.

As a team, Sacramento State was 23-of-54 from the field (42.6 percent), 4-of-16 from beyond the arc and 7-of-12 from the free throw line. The team was outrebounded 37-29 and committed 17 turnovers while forcing NAU into 14.

The Lumberjacks were guided by a combined 30 points from sisters Olivia and Nyah Moran. Oliva led the team with 17 on 7-of-12 shooting while Nyah contributed 13 on 5-of-7. Guard Regan Schenck had a game-high nine rebounds and seven assists.

NAU had slightly better shooting numbers as a team, making 43.1 percent of its field goals (25-58) and 33.3 percent from three (4-12). The big difference came from the free-throw line where the Lumberjacks were 14-of-17 compared to 7-of-12 by the Hornets.

Sacramento State will next play at Portland State on Saturday, Jan. 15. The Vikings have not played since Dec. 19 and have had their last four games postponed due to COVID-19 protocols.