TAHLEQUAH -- Northeastern State returns to the court on Thursday against Northwest Missouri in both men's (1 p.m.) and women's (3 p.m.) action before the women face off with MoWest on Friday at 9 a.m.

The NSU women are in pursuit of their second conference win and third true road victory of the campaign. The RiverHawks returned to the winning side of a matchup with a 6-1 victory to kick off MIAA play last Friday against Arkansas-Fort Smith, moving to 8-4 on the year in the process.

Entering the week, Carla Alvarez Perez owns the longest-active singles win streak for the RiverHawks, claiming her last five overall. Laura Mertens has won four in a row, all in the No. 4 singles spot, in addition to six of her last seven. Daisy Barrow has been similarly successful with wins in seven of her last eight on court three. In doubles competition, the team of Barrow and Renata Morales remains ranked #28 nationally in the latest ITA release.

Northwest Missouri took the #32 spot in the latest ITA team rankings, entering the week with 11 straight wins. Northwest also owns wins in three of the last four against NSU, though the RiverHawks own the edge in the all-time series (21-6). The majority of NSU's wins occurred across a 19-match streak that spanned 1993-2019.

MoWest also enters the week with momentum, winning their last eight overall. The RiverHawks snapped a six-match losing streak to the Griffons with a 4-3 triumph in last season's meeting, while they hold a 15-6 lead over MoWest in the all-time series.

The NSU men won both of their MIAA-opening matches last week to move to 5-6 on the campaign. A 5-2 win over Southeastern Oklahoma State last Thursday snapped a four-match losing streak, while Friday's 5-2 victory against UAFS moved the team back to .500 in conference play at 2-2.

Dominance in No. 1 and No. 2 singles helped in setting the tone on both days. James Edley and Alexander Edley swept the courts to combine for four wins, including three in straight sets. Alexander enters the week with three straight singles wins, while Tomas Aramburu joined the Edleys in winning both singles contests last week, earning his wins on court four.

The Northwest men enter the week at 7-7 overall, most recently emerging with a 5-2 victory against then-#44 Drury last Sunday. The Bearcats were placed on the first April ITA team rankings, holding the #50 spot.