Norah Gessert could have gone almost anywhere to play college basketball, but the Millard West graduate and four-star recruit chose to stay close to home when she committed to Creighton women’s basketball.
“I’m kind of a homebody,” Gessert told Hurrdat Sports. “I love being by my family, so even my family and friends coming to get to watch our games that are at home I think is awesome. The drive home is 25 minutes, a home cooked meal never hurt, so we go home on Sundays a lot. It’s just super nice being that close to home.”
Norah’s twin sister Neleigh, also a four-star and top-100 recruit according to ESPNW, joined her in committing to the hometown Bluejays. Norah said connection to the program goes way back, with the sisters serving as mop girls for Creighton in elementary school.
“I grew up watching Creighton as well, and I think it’s always been somewhere we wanted to go,” Norah said. “So just getting that opportunity to come here is amazing.”
The Wildcats won back-to-back Class A State championships while the Gesserts were in high school, defeating Bellevue West in 2024 then beating Omaha Westside in 2025. The Wildcats went 55-2 during the twins’ final two seasons.
As a senior, Norah played in 28 games, averaging 11.2 points, 5.8 assists and 1.9 rebounds. She broke Millard West’s career assists record, with many of those passes going to her sister Neleigh, the school’s career scoring leader and the 2024-25 Gatorade Nebraska Player of the Year. The two have forged a strong connection on the court throughout their many years of playing together.
“You always have someone with you, ever since we started playing since we were young,” Norah said. “On the court, we always know where each other are at. Off the court, we can hold each other accountable and it’s just someone you can go to all the time.”
Neleigh echoed the sentiment.
“It’s obviously a supper cool experience,” Neleigh said. “Not a lot of people get to do that, getting to play with someone that’s almost exactly like you. Growing up with her, we started playing together in about third grade, so it’s a pretty long time to get to play with someone at the same level. It’s something really special that you don’t see a lot, so I’m very grateful for that.”
Coach Jim Flanery said the offseason has gone well for the twins as they adjust to the college level.
“Neleigh and Norah have done a good job,” Flanery said. “They’re very different; they’re a little more different than I thought personality-wise, but they’ve done a good job. They both can score the ball. Offensively they do some good things. Their length is going to make them good passers.”
The sisters have been playing together their entire lives. Now they will continue to develop that relationship on the court in college.
“I just think the aspect that we have with each other has been built over this many years, and I think bringing it to college will really help,” Norah said. “Being with all these other girls is awesome, and just knowing you have someone there already I think can also really help.”
This year’s team is a young one, with six freshmen including the twins, but Norah has one goal in mind.
“Even though we are young, I think we really have something to prove this year,” Gessert said. “So just doing that, getting off to a hot start I think will really help us.”
Creighton opens its season at D.J. Sokol Arena with an exhibition game against Missouri Western on Oct. 26. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT.
