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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's basketball team will hit the road for a pair of contests to kickoff MIAA play this weekend. The RiverHawks (3-4) will take a three-game win streak into league play and the team will travel to Lincoln (3-4) and Lindenwood (4-2). The showdown with the Blue Tigers will tip at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 5 inside Jason Gym in Jefferson City, Mo., and NSU will meet the Lady Lions at 1:30 p.m. Dec. 7 in St. Charles, Mo.

Northeastern State's Probable Starters

F	23	Che'Ron Lewis	5-11	Fr-HS	9.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg	Cushing, Okla.
F	44	Carrington Fox	5-11	Sr-3L	5.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg	Tulsa, Okla.
G	4	Fontana Tate	5-5	Jr-2L	12.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg	Muldrow, Okla.
G	21	Chelsey Beathard	5-8	Jr-2L	8.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg	Pryor, Okla.
G	22	Sarah Sagely	5-6	Jr-TR	6.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg	West Fork, Ark.

Lincoln's Probable Starters

F	10	Jaleisha Barrett	5-10	So.	3.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg	Kansas City, Mo.
F	23	Kate Frazier	6-0	Jr.	2.4 ppg, 2.9 rpg	Springfield, Mo.
G	5	Kelsey Griffin	5-7	Jr.	5.1 ppg, 1.6 apg	Marshall, Mo.
G	11	Jackeya Mitchell	5-7	Sr.	8.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg	Memphis, Tenn.
G	32	Jennifer Rosado	5-8	Jr.	8.9 ppg, 2.3 rpg	Cache, Okla.

 
SCOUTING THE BLUE TIGERS
Lincoln has won its last two games after suffering a four-game losing skid. The team has defeated Harris-Stowe, Missouri Baptist and Hannibal-LaGrange this year, while falling to William Jewell, Truman State, Maryville, and McKendree. Hunter Yoakum (10.1 ppg) and Angela Randall (10.0 ppg) are the leading scorers, and Randall (6.3 rpg) leads the squad in rebounding. Lincoln is averaging 63.1 points per game and shooting .382 as a team.
 
AN HISTORIC DEFENSIVE EFFORT
The RiverHawks held both Arkansas-Fort Smith and Southeastern Oklahoma State to 39 points on Nov. 26 and No. 30, respectively. The total for SEOSU was the lowest since Feb. 24, 2005, and the total for the Lady Lions was the lowest for the team in its NCAA history. This was the first time since Feb. 24-26, 2005 that NSU has held back-to-back opponents to fewer than 40 points.
 
TATE TAKES THE REIGNS
Fontana Tate appears to be the player who will step up and be the top scorer for NSU this season after the team lost its top three scorers from a year ago. The junior guard has already scored a career-high 18 points on two occasions and has scored in double figures in all but two games. She has also led NSU in scoring in four games. She is shooting .470 from the field and .442 from downtown this year.
 
A ROUGH START TO THE YEAR
Northeastern State struggled to find its identity through the first part of the season. The team began the year 0-4, which was the worst start to a campaign since Randy Gipson took over the program in 1999-00. Included in those losses was a 96-73 setback to Southwestern Oklahoma State. SWOSU's 96 points were the most against NSU in the Gipson era.
 
THE STARTING FIVE
Randy Gipson-coached teams are usually known for consistency at the top of the lineup. This year, however, has been much different for Northeastern State as the team has already utilized five different starting lineups through the first seven games of the season. The only starting lineup that was been used more than once is the combination of Fontana Tate, Chelsey Beathard, Sarah Sagely, Che'Ron Lewis and Carrington Fox. NSU is 2-1 when using that starting five. Tate is the only member of the team to start every game this year, and Beathard is right behind with six starts. Others to earn at least one start this year are Lewis, Sagely, Fox, Melissa Jones, and Kate Bellamy.
 
FOX AT HOME
Carrington Fox is the lone senior on this year's NSU women's basketball team. With that distinction comes honor of carrying a pretty dominant home-court advantage. Last year's seniors were 46-3 in their home careers, and Fox is currently 38-3 in Tahlequah. She finished her career 35-2 inside Jack Dobbins Field House, and she is 3-1 inside the NSU Event Center.
 
THE BARE CUPBOARD
Northeastern State is starting fresh this season, as the club said goodbye to three of the best players of the modern era. The RiverHawks lost their top three scorers and every player that averaged more than 6.2 points per game. The leader of the group, Taylor Lewis, was a consensus All-American was named the MIAA Co-Player of the Year. She dropped 16.5 points a night and shot .429 from the field. Tosha Tyler added 11.8 points a game, and Sarah Green contributed 7.5 ppg and 6.0 rpg with a shooting clip of .563. Those expected to step up in absence of the missing firepower are Fontana Tate, Chelsey Beathard and lone senior Carrington Fox. Other returners expected to contribute are Melissa Jones, Kate Bellamy and Courtney Cowan. Newcomers who will need to mature quicker than usual are Che'Ron Lewis, Sarah Sagely, Mya Walker, and Jamie Jackson.
 
MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP IN KC
The 2013 MIAA Women's Basketball Championship is set to take place inside Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo. The top 12 teams in the regular season all qualify for postseason play, with the top four earning byes to Kansas City. The first round will be contested at host sites March 3, with the fifth seed hosting No. 12, the sixth seed hosting No. 11, etc. Those four winners will join the top four seeds in KC March 6, 8-9.
 
NORTHEASTERN STATE RECEIVED VOTES
The NSU women's basketball team received votes in the national preseason USA Today Division II Women's Basketball Top 25 Coaches' Polls. Following an 0-4 start to the season, the RiverHawks fell out of the polls and has yet to return.
 
NSU's GIPSON IN 15TH SEASON
NSU's Randy Gipson (Kentucky, '79) is in his 15th season as the RiverHawks head coach. He entered the year with a 278-130 record at NSU. He has never recorded a losing season in his 14 prior campaigns at Northeastern State, and he has led the program to seven appearances in the NCAA Championship. His NSU women's basketball teams have earned two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances (2004, '10), while advancing to the NCAA Second Round each of the last two seasons (2011-12). Gipson came to Northeastern State in 1999-00, and he captured six Lone Star Conference North Division Championships in a 12-year span. He also led NSU to the 2003 LSC Tournament Championship, while finishing runner up in the conference tournament on three occasions (2004, '05, '10). He has coached two All-Americans (Jasmine Webb, Taylor Lewis), one MIAA Player of the Year, two LSC Players of the Year and numerous all-conference players during his tenure at Northeastern State.The 2012-13 campaign was the first for the RiverHawks in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, and the squad finished second in the regular season with a 14-4 league mark. The team landed in the top 10 nationally in six statistical categories, including fewest turnovers per game (3rd), fewest personal fouls per game (4th), three-point field-goal percentage (7th), assist-turnover ratio (9th), scoring defense (10th), and three-point field goals per game (10th). He began his career at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NEO), where he spent 11 years leading the Lady Norse. He took NEO to a National Runner-up finish in 1991, and he was named Region II Coach of the Year three times.
 
THE NEW EVENT CENTER
The Northeastern State basketball programs have opened play in the new 78,200 square foot NSU Event Center. The newly-constructed facility houses the basketball offices and the NSU athletic administration. The project has cost north of $17 million and the arena is located adjacent to Doc Wadley Stadium on the north side of the NSU campus.
 
THE CLOSING OF JDF
The 2012-13 campaign was the final season in legendary Jack Dobbins Field House. The men and women closed out the building in style, as both programs defeated Central Oklahoma in front of a sensational sold out crowd. The women closed the game on a 9-2 run to top the Bronchos 64-58, and Tosha Tyler led the team with 21 points. Taylor Lewis added 15 points for NSU. The last basket ever made inside JDF was a three-pointer from Lewis, while the last points scored by the RiverHawks in the facility were a pair of free throws by Tyler. The final bucket ever scored by a women's basketball player came from UCO's Savannah Hamilton, who hit a jumper at the buzzer. Northeastern State finished the season 11-0 at home, which included victories over five ranked teams and two top-10 programs.
 
REACHING THE 25-WIN MARK
NSU has recorded at least 25 wins and a spot in the NCAA Second Round in three of the last four years. The RiverHawks posted a 28-7 mark in 2009-10, and they also advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16. Northeastern State finished with a 25-5 record each of the last two seasons, and the team reached the NCAA Second Round both years.
 
NSU SELECTED 6TH IN MIAA PRESEASON POLLS
The Northeastern State women's basketball team was picked to finish sixth in the MIAA by the league coaches and media. The RiverHawks earned 101 points in the coaches' poll and 267 points in the media poll a year after placing second in the league. Emporia State topped the coaches' poll with 164 points and eight first-place votes. Central Missouri landed atop the media poll with 359 points and 13 first-place votes. Northeastern State returns two starters in senior forward Carrington Fox (4.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 46 blocks, All-MIAA Defensive Team) and junior point guard Fontana Tate (6.2 ppg, 3.8 rpg). The team also brings back key reserves in junior guard Chelsey Beathard (6.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg) and sophomore forward Melissa Jones (2.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg). NSU lost its top three scorers to graduation, which included All-American and MIAA Co-Player of the Year Taylor Lewis, and has added one junior college transfer and three freshmen.
 
LEWIS LANDS ALL-AMERICAN ACCOLADES
Former Northeastern State great Taylor Lewis was named an All-American by two organizations last season. She was named a 2013 Women's Division II Bulletin All-American Honorable Mention and a 2013 WBCA Division II Coaches' All-American Honorable Mention. She was also named the MIAA Co-Player of the Year and earned a spot on the Daktronics All-Central Region Second Team and the All-MIAA First Team. Lewis finished third in the league in scoring at 16.5 points per game and reached double figures in all but two games.  She also averaged 18.1 ppg during league contests. She led the entire MIAA and finished third in the nation in free-throw percentage (.899), breaking the school record for free-throw percentage in a season in the process. She also led the MIAA in three-point field goals made per game (3.0) and three-point field goal percentage (.423). She finished seventh and eighth in the nation, respectively, in those two categories.
 
NSU FINISHES SECOND IN INAUGURAL MIAA CAMPAIGN
Northeastern State finished its first season in the MIAA with a 14-4 record. The RiverHawks tied with Central Missouri in second place, while Washburn (16-2) took home the league crown. Emporia State (13-5) placed fourth. NSU was selected to finish fourth in the conference this season by both the media and the league coaches.
 
NSU KNOCKS OFF 5 RANKED FOES IN 2012-13
NSU defeated five ranked opponents last season. The RiverHawks knocked off No. 9 Washburn (52-43), No. 10 Fort Hays State (54-44), No. 18 Pittsburg State (65-50), No. 19 Truman State (46-44), and No. 21 Emporia State (63-51). In all five upset victories, the green and white has held its opponent to a season low in scoring and no worse than the second-worst shooting percentage of the season up to that point.
 
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE
The NSU Athletics Department announced its season ticket packages for the home portion of the men's and women's basketball schedule. Adult general admission prices can be purchased for $125, and the season chair back seats are $200. Season ticket holders receive the benefit of sitting in comfortable chair back seats. They also receive first option to purchase playoff tickets, premier seating for NSU's 13 home games, excellent view of the playing surface and premier seating in the new 78,200 square foot multipurpose event center. New for 2013 is the $25 single-game Family 4-Pack, which includes two general admission adult tickets and two general admission student tickets (ages 4 through high school). The Family 4-Pack may be purchased at any time and used at any regular season home game. All Northeastern State home men's and women's basketball games are contested at the NSU Event Center.
 
ID'S REQUIRED FOR ENTRY IN 2013
All fans wishing to attend an NSU home football or basketball contest this season will be required to show a ticket prior to entering the facilities. NSU students and faculty/staff will still be allowed free admittance, but NSU ID's will no longer be accepted as a form of entry. Tickets can be purchased at NSU's new ticketing Web site, goriverhawkstickets.com. NSU students and faculty/staff can access goriverhawkstickets.com and secure their free tickets (either printable or downloaded to your smart phone) through their goNSU accounts. For questions regarding ticket options, please contact Brynn Hamner at 918.444.3901.
 
GO RIVERHAWKS GEAR
Northeastern State University Athletics has partnered with Advanced-Online and has launced its new, one-of-a-kind online shopping site, goriverhawksgear.com. NSU fans have another avenue for acquiring Northeastern State apparel and accessories. The store is loaded with options for fans of all ages, ranging from T-shirts, polos and sweatshirts, to home office supplies, drinkware and kitchen essentials. Every item is branded with official Northeastern State athletics and university logos, and select RiverHawks gear and accessories are customizable. The new online store can be accessed by simply visiting www.goriverhawksgear.com. The shop can also be viewed by clicking on the shopping cart at the top right of www.goriverhawksgo.com, the static graphic underneath the main picture or the rotating horizontal carousel just above the video player.
 
GIPSON SIGNS GRIFFIN DURING EARLY PERIOD
Northeastern State women's basketball coach Randy Gipson announced the signing of Miranda Griffin to a National Letter of Intent during the early period. Griffin, a native of Ketchum, Okla., is currently competing at Ketchum High School and is the first signee for the class of 2014. "Miranda brings an excellent offensive skill package to our program," Gipson said. "She can handle the ball well, she can pass effectively and she can score. We are excited to have her join us." As a junior in 2012-13, Griffin averaged 15.8 points per game and posted 8.3 rebounds per game. She had 150 steals and led all Oklahoma high schools with 274 assists, averaging 9.8 per game. She has already surpassed 1,000 career points at the prep level and even registered a quadruple-double (22 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds, 10 steals) last year.