TAHLEQUAH – Northeastern State concludes their regular season with matchups against Ouachita Baptist and Harding after clinching a spot in the GAC/MIAA tournament with last Saturday's win over Newman. 

Thursday's Senior Night battle with Ouachita Baptist concludes NSU's home slate in 2023, with festivities honoring the senior class taking place before the match. The regular season finale takes place Saturday afternoon, as NSU will face a Harding team they eliminated from postseason contention last Saturday. 

NSU enters the week in fourth place in the GAC/MIAA standings. Southern Nazarene has clinched the top seed for the tournament, but the RiverHawks sit just two points back of third-place Rogers State and four back from second-place Fort Hays State. 

Northeastern State (7-5-3, 5-4-1 GAC/MIAA) vs. Ouachita Baptist // November 2 at 7 p.m. // Live Coverage

History with the Tigers (0-14-3, 0-9-2 GAC/MIAA)
The RiverHawks have taken 22 of 25 against the Tigers, including eleven straight. Twelve of their wins in the series have come at home, while they're a perfect 8-0 for matches held inside conference play.

Scouting the Tigers
- Ouachita Baptist has scored 13 goals across 17 matches and are the only team in the conference to average less than a goal per match. 
- The Tigers have surrendered the most goals in the conference (58). Their average per-match total (3.4) is a goal higher than the next-most in the GAC/MIAA (Harding at 2.4). 
- Ebon Jordan leads the team with four goals scored in the campaign. The senior enters the week coming off a scoring performance against Rogers State last Saturday. 
- OBU has not won a match since they defeated Newman in Wichita, Kan. on Sept. 24, 2022. 

Fast Facts
- In their first 2023 meeting on Oct. 14 in Arkadelphia, Ark., three second-half goals, including two from Martin Martinez allowed Northeastern State to pick up a 3-0 victory. 
- The last two meetings between the teams have had identical scores (3-0 NSU victories) and shot outputs (24-2 in NSU's favor). 
- The two offenses make up the bottom of the conference in shots on the season. The RiverHawks are ranked sixth with 152 attempts (10.1 per match) while the Tigers sit in seventh with 129 (7.6 per match). 

Northeastern State at Harding  // November 4 at 11:30 a.m. // Live Coverage

History with the Bison (6-10-1, 4-7 GAC/MIAA)
The RiverHawks have won 26 of 27, including the last seven. NSU's lone loss to the Bison across the all-time series came in Searcy, Ark. on Oct. 12, 2019. 

Scouting the Bison
- Harding enters the final week of the regular season coming off a 3-1 win over Rogers State in their home finale before taking a 5-0 loss to Southern Nazarene. The loss, paired with NSU's win on Saturday against Newman, knocked the Bison out of postseason contention. 
- Stefano Silva leads the team and ranks inside the conference's top ten with five goals on the season.
- Harding goalkeepers have combined to make 102 saves, the second-most in the GAC/MIAA. 
- The Bison have been on the winning end of three road contests in 2023. A victory over the RiverHawks on Saturday would be their fourth, which would be double their away win total from Searcy last season. 

Fast Facts
- The RiverHawks have pitched a shutout and scored multiple goals in five straight meetings. 
- When the teams met in Tahlequah on Sept. 23, 2023, Ivan Lopez contributed his fourth goal of the season to open things up for the NSU offense in the 28th minute, while Luis Felipe Karam netted his first make of his collegiate career in the 76th. Despite Harding equalling NSU's shot total of ten, the RiverHawks shut the Bison out over the full time in the 2-0 win. 
- Northeastern State has been dominant in recent history when they've played in the Natural state. The RiverHawks have won seven straight matches held in Arkansas dating back to 2019. 

In the Rankings
- Ian Milla is tied for 14th nationally with a .815 save percentage. 
- Ivan Lopez is fifth nationally in shot accuracy (.704).

Coming Up
Northeastern State starts postseason play with the GAC/MIAA semifinals on Friday, Nov. 10. Given the seeding possibilities, NSU could enter the tournament as high as the second seed or as low as the fourth depending on how this week's action plays out.