TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's soccer team will compete against Central Oklahoma in the semifinals of the 2015 MIAA Championship. The RiverHawks and Bronchos will meet at 7 p.m. Nov. 6 in Warrensburg, Missouri.

NSU (14-4-1) is the No. 3 seed in the tournament, while UCO (12-5-2) is the No. 2 seed in the event. Northeastern State defeated No. 6 Missouri Western State 1-0 in the quarterfinals, while Central Oklahoma topped Nebraska-Kearney 3-1 in the opening round.

ABOUT NSU
The RiverHawks are through to the semifinals for the first time since 2012. The 14 wins are the second-most in school history, which is one shy of the school record of 15 set in 2013. NSU has also had a record-breaking season that saw the highest amount of different goal scorers in program history (17). Northeastern State has also netted 55 goals, which is the most since 2003 when they scored the same amount. NSU has outscored its opponents 55-16 and outshot them 352-184. Offensively, the RiverHawks have been led by junior forward Anastasia Robinson, who has an MIAA-best 33 points (12g-9a). Junior midfielder Jennifer Cudjoe has helped lead the offensive attack with eight goals and seven assists for 23 points. Sophomore midfielder Julia Mathis has played her part with 21 points (6g-9a). Junior goalkeeper Jordan Woodruff (14-4-1) has started in all 19 matches. She has played 1,584 minutes in goal and holds a 0.80 goals-against average and a .794 saves percentage. Woodruff also has collected seven clean sheets. She has a school record 37 career victories and 21 shutouts.
 
SCOUTING THE BRONCHOS
Name: University of Central Oklahoma
Location: Edmond, Oklahoma
Conference: MIAA
Record: (12-5-2)
Top scorer: Katie Killion (10g-5a=25p)
Assist leader: Katie Killion (10g-5a=25p)  
Top goalkeeper: Elle Stover (8-4-2) / 1.42 GAA / .750 saves percentage
Series History: UCO leads 4-1-1 since both teams joined the MIAA in 2012
Other information: UCO has beaten NSU both times the teams have met this season. Central Oklahoma won at home 1-0 in the first meeting, and in the second match UCO defeated NSU 3-1 in Tahlequah. Katie Killion scored two goals and tallied one assist during the 3-1 victory. Killion is tied for fourth in MIAA with 25 points on 10 goals and five assists. The team has now won seven matches in a row. Last year, the Bronchos were bounced in the semifinals of the MIAA Championship by Central Missouri in penalty kicks after tying 0-0 in regulation. The team was then eliminated in the second round of the NCAA Championship by Central Missouri 2-0. UCO has been to the NCAA Championship in three of the past four seasons.

NSU IN THE MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP
Northeastern State has qualified for the tournament all four years since joining the MIAA. The No. 3 seed assigned to NSU this season is the second highest the team has earned in that span. In 2012, the RiverHawks defeated Northwest Missouri State in the opening round, but then fell to Central Missouri in the semifinals as the No. 4 seed. In 2013, the team was awarded the No. 2 seed but was then upset by No. 7 seed Emporia State in the first round. Last year, as the No. 8 seed, NSU was bounced by No. 1 seed Central Missouri 3-0 in the opening round. Senior forwards Lindsey Latta and McKenzie Musella are the only RiverHawks on the current roster to have scored a goal in the MIAA Championship. Latta scored in 2012 and Musella scored the game-winning goal in the quarterfinals this year.

INDIVIDUAL HIGHS IN THE MIAA
Anastasia Robinson: 1st in points (33), T-1 in assists (9), T-2 in goals (12), T-3 in game-winning goals (3), T-3 in shots (50), 6th in shots (58)
Jennifer Cudjoe: T-4 in assists (7), 5th in shots (60), T-6 in points (23), 8th in goals (8)
Julia Mathis: T-1 in assists (9), 9th in points (21), T-8 in shots (53)
McKenzie Musella:  T-4 in assists (7)
Kelsey McIntyre: T-6 in assists (6)
Jordan Woodruff: 2nd in shutouts (7), 3rd in goals against average (.795), 6th in save percentage (.794), 10th in saves (54)
 
INDIVIDUAL HIGHS NATIONALLY (top 25)
Julia Mathis: T-12 in assists (9)
Anastasia Robinson: T-12 in assists (9), T-22 in points (33)

TEAM HIGHS NATIONALLY (top 25)
T-5 in assists (52)
T-5 in assists per game (2.74)
8th in total points (162)
10th in points per game (8.53) 
12th in total goals (55)
13th in goals per game (2.89)
 
NSU STILL REGIONALLY RANKED
Northeastern State was ranked No. 7 in the third and final installment of the NCAA Central Region rankings, the National Collegiate Athletics Association announced Wednesday afternoon. 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. NSU was ranked No. 6 in the first two installments of the rankings, but dropped one spot after going 0-1-1 in the last week of the regular season. The No. 6 ranking is the second highest in program history. The NCAA Championship participants will be revealed Nov. 9. NSU is attempting to qualify for the NCAA Championship for the first time in program history.

-GoRiverHawksGo.com-