TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's basketball team is battling for a playoff spot with six games remaining in the season.

The RiverHawks (7-15, 4-12 MIAA) are home for two contests this weekend, beginning with 5:30 p.m. tilt Feb. 11 against No. 8 Missouri Western State (21-2, 15-2). NSU will then meet Northwest Missouri State (5-18, 3-14) at 1:30 p.m. Feb. 13. Both games will be contested inside the NSU Event Center. The Griffons are currently sitting atop the MIAA standings, while the Bearcats are tied for 13th.
 

Northeastern State's Probable Starters
F	15	Mary Jane Buschmann	5-11	Jr-TR	13.0 ppg, 5.3 rpg	St. James, Mo.
G	04	Alexis Hill	5-6	So-1L	4.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg	Garland, Texas
G	05	Kate Bellamy	5-9	Sr-3L	10.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg	NSW, Australia
G	20	Cailyn Long	6-0	Fr-HS	8.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg	Sparta, Mo.
G	22	Kylie Looney	5-8	Fr-HS	7.4 ppg, 2.3 apg	Adair, Okla.
#8 Missouri Western State's Probable Starters
F	30	Miliakere Koyamainavure	5-9	Sr.	11.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg	Suva, Fiji
G	03	LaQuinta Jefferson	6-0	Sr.	22.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg	Murfreesboro, Tenn.
G	05	Sarafina Handy	5-9	Sr.	14.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg	Flossmoor, Ill.
G	22	Chelsea Dewey	5-8	Jr.	7.3 ppg, 3.9 apg	Gower, Mo.
G	24	Julia Torres	5-11	Jr.	8.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg	Canadian, Texas

Northeastern State holds a 5-2 record over the Griffons since the RiverHawks joined the NCAA in 1996-97. Missouri Western State has won each of the last two meetings, including an 88-49 triumph over NSU earlier this season (Jan. 2).
 
Northeastern State is 6-2 against the Bearcats since joining the NCAA in 1996-97. One of those victories came earlier this season, when the green and white defeated Northwest Missouri State 66-60 in Maryville on Jan. 4.
 
THE LAST TIME OUT – NSU 67, UCO 61 (OT)
The RiverHawks earned a 67-61 come-from-behind overtime victory over Central Oklahoma Saturday afternoon in Hamilton Field House. NSU came from 21 points down to pick up their second league road win and vault into 11th place in the conference standings. Kate Bellamy recorded her second career double-double after finishing with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Cailyn Long led all scorers with 17 points, and Alexis Hill finished with 14 points, six rebounds and four assists. Kylie Looney added 11 points. There were four bench points total in the entire game, and all four came from Eriyonna Irvin. She also registered six rebounds and five assists. Northeastern State shot 44.9 percent (22-for-49) overall for the game, 41.2 percent (14-for-34) from behind the 3-point line and 69.2 percent (9-for-13) at the free-throw line. The RiverHawks were 3-for-16 from distance in the first half but shot a blistering 10-for-15 from deep in the second half. UCO tallied a 35.9 percentage (23-for-64) for the game, while shooting 23.3 percent (7-for-30) from distance and 61.5 percent (8-for-13) at the charity stripe. Julia Mason paced the Bronchos with 16 points, while Haley Weathers added 15, McKenzie Solberg contributed 13 and Jordan Ward scored 12.
 
THE LAST TIME THEY MET - MWSU 88, NSU 49
NSU lost 88-49 to then-No. 16 ranked Missouri Western State University on Jan. 2 inside MWSU Fieldhouse. Kate Bellamy led NSU with a season-high 15 points. She has also scored in double figures in three-straight games. Minja Savic entered the game with just five points total through the first half of the season, but she earned her first start of the year and erupted for a season-best 10 points. Mary Jane Buschmann was just 4 of 17 from the field but she was able to manage 10 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Northeastern State shot 34.6 percent (18-for-52) overall, 15.4 percent (2-for-13) from behind the 3-point line and 78.6 percent (11-for-14) at the free-throw line. Missouri Western State shot 52.7 percent (29-for-55) from the field, 42.1 percent (8-for-19) from deep and 88.0 percent (22-for-25) at the line. LaQuinta Jefferson led all scorers with 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting. Sarafina Handy connected on five triples to post 15 points, while Dwanisha Tate added 11 and Julia Torres scored 10 for the home team. The Griffons led in all statistical categories, including rebounding (37-25), assists (19-14), fewer turnovers (18-23), blocks (2-1), steals (17-5), points in the paint (40-18), points off turnovers (28-15), second-chance points (13-2), fast break points (14-0) and bench points (33-8).
 
THE LAST TIME THEY MET - NSU 66, NWMSU 60
Northeastern State earned a 66-60 victory over Northwest Missouri State inside Bearcat Arena on Jan. 4. Mary Jane Buschmann scored a season-high 24 points on 10-of-18 shooting. Kylie Looney (12) and Cailyn Long (11) both tallied double-digit scoring efforts, while senior guard Kate Bellamy contributed 10 points of her own. NSU connected on 42.6 percent (26-for-61) of shots from the field, 41.7 percent (10-for-24) from behind the 3-point line and 57.1 percent (4-for-7) at the free-throw stripe. NWMSU shot 43.1 percent (25-for-58) overall, 33.3 percent (9-for-27) from the arc and made its only free-throw attempt of the entire game. Both Tanya Meyer and Tember Schechinger scored 19 points for the losing side, while Schechinger added 11 rebounds for the double-double. Northwest Missouri State outrebounded NSU 35-34 and also led in assists (15-14), blocks (5-1), points off turnovers (11-10) and bench points (13-5). Northeastern State led the way in points in the paint (26-24), second-chance points (9-2), steals (8-7) and fewer turnovers (7-13).
 
WHERE THEY STAND
NSU is currently 4-12 in league play and is in 11th place in the MIAA standings. If the season were to end today, the RiverHawks would earn the No. 11 seed and would travel to No. 6 seed Missouri Southern State on Feb. 29 in the first round of the MIAA Championship. The winner of that contest would join seven other schools in Kansas City for the remainder of the tournament. Missouri Western State, Fort Hays State, Pittsburg State and Emporia State are all slated to earn the four byes to KC.
 
SCORING IN DOUBLE FIGURES
No member of the NSU women's basketball team averaged double-digit scoring a season ago, but the RiverHawks have two players who are averaging double figures this year. Junior transfer Mary Jane Buschmann leads the team at 13.0 points per game, while senior Kate Bellamy is averaging a career-high 10.7 ppg. Buschmann has notched double figures in 14 games this year. She also has three 20-point games. Bellamy owns 13 double-digit performances. True freshman Cailyn Long is third on the team in scoring at 8.7 ppg and had a season-best 27-point explosion earlier this year. Only once last season did a member of the team score at least 20 points in a game.
 
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.