TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's soccer team is set to close out the regular season with a pair of MIAA matches this week. The RiverHawks will first play host to rival Central Oklahoma at 7 p.m. Oct. 29 before traveling to Bolivar, Missouri, for a noon match Oct. 31 against Southwest Baptist. The matchup with the Bronchos will be Senior Night for NSU, and the four seniors (Emily Burch, Kelsey Fisher, Lindsey Latta, McKenzie Musella) will be honored at halftime.

ABOUT NSU
Northeastern State (13-3, 7-2 MIAA) will carry a three-match win streak into the final week of the regular season. The RiverHawks have recently defeated No. 10 Central Missouri (1-0), regionally-ranked SBU (8-1) and Missouri Southern State (1-0). The eight goals scored against the Bearcats were the most in a single match since Sept. 10, 2011. NSU has now reached 50 goals in a single season for the first time since 2003, and the RiverHawks have only conceded 10 tallies in 2015. Junior forward Anastasia Robinson leads the MIAA in scoring with 28 points (11g-6a), and junior midfielder Jennifer Cudjoe is second on the team with 20 points (7g-6a). Sophomore midfielder Julia Mathis leads the MIAA in assists and is third on the team with 19 points (5g-9a). Junior goalkeeper Jordan Woodruff (13-3) has started between the posts in all 16 matches and has a goals-against average of 0.56 and a saves percentage of .843. She also has six shutouts.

WHERE THEY STAND
The RiverHawks have an opportunity to make school history this weekend. Two victories in their final two matches of the regular season would guarantee no worse than a share of the 2015 MIAA Regular Season Championship, which would be the first conference crown in school history. The team would also earn the top seed in the 2015 MIAA Championship tournament, which will be held Nov. 4, 6, 8 at campus sites. NSU enters the final week of the regular season tied with Central Missouri atop the league table with 21 points (7-2 record). The RiverHawks are the only team in the league who has clinched a top 4 spot, therefore they are guaranteed to host a first-round match in the MIAA Championship regardless of what happens this weekend. Also currently in the field for the eight-team postseason tournament are Central Oklahoma (5-2-2, 17 points), Fort Hays State (5-4, 15 points), Southwest Baptist (5-4, 15 points), Emporia State (4-4-1, 13 points) and Missouri Western State (4-4-1, 13 points). Lindenwood, Washburn and Nebraska-Kearney are all tied for eighth place with identical 3-4-2 records in league play (11 points).

SCOUTING THE BRONCHOS
Name: University of Central Oklahoma
Location: Edmond, Oklahoma
Conference: MIAA
Record: 9-5-2, 5-2-2 MIAA
Series History: UCO leads 3-1-1 since both teams joined the MIAA in 2012
Top scorer: Kentia Kokis (7g-1a=15p) / Katie Killion (6g-3a=15p)
Assist leader: Falyn Dodd (3g-4a=10p)  
Top goalkeeper: Elle Stover (6-4-2) / 1.57 GAA / .730 saves percentage
Fun fact: The Bronchos are currently 6-2-2 in their last 10 matches and are ranked No. 8 in the NCAA Central Region

SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
Name: Southwest Baptist University   
Location: Bolivar, Missouri
Conference: MIAA
Record: 8-8, 5-4 MIAA
Series History: NSU leads 3-2
Top scorer: Karla Jamison (12g-2a=26p)
Assist leader: Caroline Karlsson (4g-5a=13p)
Top goalkeeper: Cheyenne Forshey (7-2) / 1.58 GAA / .717 saves percentage
Fun fact: NSU scored a season-high eight goals when these two teams met in Tahlequah on Oct. 23.
 
RIVERHAWKS REMAIN 6TH IN NCAA REGION RANKINGS
NSU remained at No. 6 in the second installment of NCAA Central Region rankings, the National Collegiate Athletics Association announced Oct. 28. The top six programs from the Central Region at seasons' end will qualify for the 2015 NCAA Championship. The top two teams from the region will host opening-round matches. The No. 6 position is tied for the second-highest NSU has ever been ranked in the NCAA regional polls (No. 5 on Nov. 6, 2013). Northeastern State is attempting to qualify for the NCAA Championship for the first time in program history. The next set of regional rankings will be released Nov. 4. The NCAA Championship participants will be announced Nov. 9. The other five teams currently projected to qualify for the tournament went unchanged from last week's initial rankings. Those were Minnesota State, Central Missouri, Augustana, Minot State and Winona State. The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, Great American Conference and Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference comprise the 35-team NCAA Central Region. The top six teams advance to the NCAA Championship. The regional rounds will be contested Nov. 13 & 15 and Nov. 20 & 22. Automatic bids are granted to the winners of the MIAA, GAC and NSIC postseason tournaments, with the remaining three spots awarded on an at-large basis.

INDIVIDUAL RANKS IN THE MIAA
Anastasia Robinson: T-1 in points (28), T-2 in game-winning goals (3), T-2 in goals (11), T-3 in shots (50), T-3 in assists (6)
Jennifer Cudjoe: T-3 in assists (3), 5th in shots (48), 7th in points (20), T-7 in goals (7)
Julia Mathis: 1st in assists (9), T-6 in shots (47), 8th in points (19)
McKenzie Musella: 2nd in assists (7)
Kelsey McIntyre: T-3 in assists (6)
Jordan Woodruff: 2nd in goals-against average (.556), 2nd in save percentage (.843), 2nd in shutouts (6), 9th in total saves (43)

INDIVIDUALS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS (top 25)
Julia Mathis: T-7 in assists (9)
McKenzie Musella: T-24 in assists (7)
Jordan Woodruff: 20th in goals-against average (.556)

HOW NSU STACKS UP NATIONALLY (top 25)
5th in assists (47)
5th in assists per game (2.94)
7th in points per game (9.19) 
9th in total points (147)
T-11 in scoring offense (3.13)
T-12 in total goals (50)
T-23 in won-lost-tied percentage (.813)
28th in goals-against average (.625)

MATHIS, WOODRUFF BOTH COLLECT WEEKLY MIAA ACCOLADES
Julia Mathis and Jordan Woodruff were honored as the MIAA Offensive and Goalkeeper Athletes of the Week, the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association announced Oct. 27. Mathis helped keep the RiverHawks atop the MIAA standings with a four-point weekend (1g-2a). She scored the lone tally for Northeastern State in a 1-0 win over Missouri Southern State, and she also collected a pair of assists in NSU's 8-1 win over regionally-ranked Southwest Baptist. Mathis now has an MIAA-best nine assists this season. Woodruff, a junior goalkeeper from Long Island, New York, did not concede a goal and picked up two victories in net this past week to bump her total to 13 wins and six shutouts this season. She was in net for 51 minutes against SBU and finished her week with a clean sheet over the Lions. Woodruff extended her own school records to 36 victories and 20 clean sheets. NSU leads the MIAA by a comfortable margin with eight weekly award winners this season. Woodruff has now won the top goalkeeper award twice this season (Sept. 15), Anastasia Robinson has twice been named the offensive athlete of the week (Sept. 29, Oct. 13) and Rachel Gleaso (Sept. 8, Oct. 20) and Emily Burch (Oct. 13) have combined for three defensive athlete of the week honors. Northeastern State is the only team in the MIAA with at least three offensive athlete of the week award winners, and the RiverHawks are the only team in the league with at least three defensive athlete of the week winners. NSU is one of two teams with multiple goalkeeper honorees this season. Mathis collected the second weekly offensive award of her career (Nov. 4, 2014), while Woodruff has now won the goalkeeper award seven times over the past three years.