Alva Review-Courier -

BETHANY, Okla. — For the first time since the 2012-13 season, Southern Nazarene picked up its 10th win of the season inside the Sawyer Center with a 72-59 victory over Arkansas Tech on Senior Day.

The Crimson Storm closed out their final home game of the season on the right note as they forced 15 turnovers out of the Golden Suns in the contest. Both teams shot 39 percent in the game as SNU went 5-for-19 (26%) from behind the arc while ATU made just 2-of-12 tries from downtown. Arkansas Tech won the rebounding battle 39-33, but the Storm scored more points in the paint and had six more bench points.

Spaniards Irene Perez and Sonia Sarda wanted to crash the Senior Day festivities and that's exactly what they did. Sarda scored a career-high 16 points off the SNU bench on 6-of-9 shooting and 2-of-5 makes from behind the arc. The freshman also added two rebounds and three assists as well. Perez tallied 15 points in the game and led the way at the line as the sophomore converted 9-of-12 free-throws.

Seniors Madeline Schroepfer and Adrienne Berry each finished in double-figure scoring as Schroepfer scored 13 points and pulled down six rebounds, while Berry finished with 11 points and also corralled four rebounds. Jaycee Soap came off the Storm bench to add eight points for the Storm as well.

Southern Nazarene came out aggressive right from the opening tip, as they went to the free-throw line 12 times in the first quarter. They shot just 28.6 percent in the period, but forced five turnovers out of Arkansas Tech and faced a 18-16 deficit heading into the second.

The Crimson Storm found their rhythm on offense in the second quarter, as they shot 52.9 percent from the floor and went 2-for-4 from behind the three-point arc. They forced another five turnovers out of the Golden Suns and Sarda's bucket as time expired in the half gave SNU a 39-31 lead heading into the break.

Both offenses cooled off in the third as the Storm shot 35 percent while ATU shot 37 percent. SNU went just 1-for-8 from three-point range but still managed to outscore Tech 16-14 to take a 55-45 lead into the final frame.

Soap's three-pointer with 7:08 to play gave Southern Nazarene its largest lead at 63-49 and Arkansas Tech had no answer coming down the stretch. SNU increased their lead to 71-57 and cruised in the final two minutes for their 13th GAC win of the season.

The Crimson Storm will hit the road next week for one final road trip to conclude the regular season as they take on Arkansas-Monticello on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in Monticello, Arkansas.