BILLINGS, MT. -  Nova Southeastern Women's Basketball made its long-awaited return to the court in victorious fashion, defeating Simon Fraser 58-45 to start the D2CCA Tip-off Classic at the Trailhead on Friday afternoon. The win comes 612 days after the Sharks last played. Kyarrah Grant led NSU, scoring 15 points on 45% shooting.  

INSIDE THE MATCHUP 

• FINAL: W, 58-45 
• RECORDS: Nova Southeastern Sharks (1-0), Simon Fraser (0-1) 
• LOCATION: Alterowitz Gymnasium | Billings, MT. 
• GET SOCIAL: @NSU_WBasketball – Twitter & Instagram; NSU Women's Basketball – Facebook 

HOW IT HAPPENED 

1ST QUARTER | Madeline Hardy and Grace Gilmore each added makes for NSU to put the score at 5-4 in the first four minutes of the contest. SFU closed the quarter on a 9-5 run, putting the score at 14-9. Hardy scored a total of five points in the first quarter for the Sharks.  

2ND QUARTER | A'Lexus Bryant brought the Sharks within two (19-17) after making a jump shot midway through the second quarter. During the final 1:37 of the first half, NSU rallied for a 6-0 run which tied the game at 26-26 at halftime. Hardy, Kyarrah Grant and McKenah Peters all scored points during the run.  

3RD QUARTER | Grant gave Nova Southeastern its first lead of the game by making two free throws early in the third quarter. Simon Fraser reclaimed the lead with a three-pointer at the half-way point, putting the score at 35-32. Peters scored five straight points for NSU, as the Sharks took a 39-37 advantage with 2:09 remaining in the quarter.  

4TH QUARTER | India Shepherd and Hailey Conley each made a three-pointer to begin the quarter, extending the Sharks lead to 48-41. Grant added a three-pointer of her own to put Nova Southeastern ahead 55-43. NSU closed out SFU, earning the season-opening 58-43 win.  

UP NEXT 

Nova Southeastern continues play at the D2CCA Tip-off Classic at the Trailhead on Sat., Nov. 6. The Sharks will take on the Mary Marauders at 12 p.m. EST