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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's basketball team is set to continue MIAA play for the 2014-15 season. The RiverHawks (3-3, 1-0 MIAA) will take on Lindenwood University (5-1, 0-1 MIAA) at 1:30 p.m. Dec. 6 in the NSU Event Center.

Northeastern State leads the series over Lindenwood 3-1 since the RiverHawks joined the MIAA in 2011-12. LWU earned a 63-50 victory in St. Charles last season, while NSU topped the Lions 87-50 in Tahlequah in 2012-13. The RiverHawks won both meetings in 2011-12 by the score of 67-54 in St. Charles and 65-47 at home.
 
Northeastern State's Probable Starters

F	34	Mya Walker	5-7	So-1L	8.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg	Columbus, Ohio
G	04	Fontana Tate	5-5	Sr-3L	10.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg	Muldrow, Okla.
G	05	Kate Bellamy	5-9	Jr-2L	7.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg	New South Wales, Australia
G	14	Alexis Hill	5-6	Fr-HS	6.0 ppg, 2.8 rpg	Garland, Texas
G	21	Chelsey Beathard	5-8	Sr-3L	10.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg	Pryor, Okla.
Lindenwood's Probable Starters
F	11	Vanessa Zailo	5-11	Jr.	5.8 ppg, 12.5 rpg	Sumerland, British Columbia
F	13	Beth Maenpaa	6-1	Fr.	6.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg	Reedsburg, Wisc.
G	10	Bri Wilber	5-5	Fr.	6.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg	Broomfield, Colo.
G	15	Kassidy Gengenbacher	5-10	So.	17.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg	Quincy, Ill.
G	35	Morgan Johnson	5-9	Sr.	3.8 ppg, 1.0 rpg	Whiteland, Ind.

 
SCOUTING THE LIONS
Lindenwood University is located in St. Charles, Missouri, and the team competes in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. The Lions are 5-1 in the 2014-15 season and 0-1 in MIAA play. LWU lost their MIAA opener 76-47 to Central Oklahoma. They were picked to finish seventh in the preseason MIAA poll. Kassidy Gengenbacher (17.5 ppg) and Jenny Rocha (13.8 ppg) lead the team in scoring. Vanessa Zailo averages 5.8 points per game and leads the team in rebounding with 12.5 rebounds per game. The Lions average 73.0 points per game and shoot .456 as a team.
 
THE LAST TIME OUT – NSU 69, LU 68
The Northeastern State women's basketball team erased a 15-point deficit and needed a last-second 3-point play to defeat Lincoln 69-68 Thursday evening inside the NSU Event Center. The RiverHawks won their third-straight conference opener. Hunter Yoakum drained a triple with just 4.5 ticks remaining to push Lincoln ahead 68-66. Alexis Hill went coast-to-coast and converted a last-second layup while being fouled. Hill calmly stepped to the free-throw line and gave her team the one-point victory. Hill finished with 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting in 33 minutes. Senior guard Chelsey Beathard poured in a career-high 18 points, and fellow senior guard Fontana Tate added 10 in the winning effort. Northeastern State shot 36.8 percent (21-for-57) from the field, 41.2 percent (7-for-17) from 3-point territory and 80 percent (20-for-25) at the free-throw line. Lincoln shot an identical 36.8 percent (21-for-57) from the field, 28.6 percent (8-for-28) from downtown and 72 percent (18-for-25) at the charity stripe. Briggs pace Blue Tigers with 16 points. Yoakum added 14, and Nessling chipped in 10 rebounds.
 
THE LAST TIME THEY MET – LWU 63, NSU 50
The Northeastern State women's basketball team lost a Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association matchup 63-50 to Lindenwood University inside Hyland Arena on December 7, 2013. Guard Fontana Tate and guard Jamie Jackson led NSU with 10 points each. Forward Carrington Fox posted a career-high 10 rebounds to go along with five points, five assists and three blocks in 31 minutes. NSU shot just 31 percent (18-for-59) from the field and 21 percent (3-for-14) from downtown. LU posted a 43-percent shooting average (21-for-49) and connected on 35 percent (6-for-17) from distance. Lindenwood outrebounded NSU 39-36 and made four more free throws (15 to 11) than the RiverHawks. Morgan Johnson paced the home team with 14 points and eight rebounds. Julie Hlinak added 13 points off the bench and Kassidy Gengenbacher chipped in 12.
 
MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP IN KC
The 2015 MIAA Women's Basketball Championship is set to take place inside Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The top 12 teams in the regular season all qualify for postseason play, with the top four earning byes to Kansas City. The first round will be contested at host sites March 3, with the fifth seed hosting No. 12, the sixth seed hosting No. 11, etc. Those four winners will join the top four seeds in KC March 6-8. Both NSU basketball programs have advanced to the MIAA Championship Quarterfinals in Kansas City in each of their first two years in the league.
 
SENIORS AT HOME
Chelsey Beathard and Fontana Tate are the two four-year seniors on the squad this year. They posted a 22-1 record inside Jack Dobbins Field House, and they are currently 11-6 inside the NSU Event Center. The RiverHawks seniors have tallied a 33-7 record at home in their careers.
 
RIVERHAWKS RECEIVED VOTES IN NATIONAL POLLS
The NSU women's basketball team received votes in the USA Today Division II Women's Basketball Top 25 Coaches' Polls that was issued on November 25. The RiverHawks fell out of the polls the following after losing twice in Missouri.
 
THE STARTING FIVE
Randy Gipson-coached teams are usually known for consistency at the top of the lineup. The past two years, however, have been much different for Northeastern State. The team utilized 10 different starting lineups last season and have already used a different starting lineup in each of the first five games in 2014-15. Fontana Tate leads NSU with 50 career starts, and Chelsey Beathard is second on the squad with 34 starts. Kate Bellamy (26) and Sarah Sagely (14) also own double-digit starts. Mya Walker (4),  Sara Fountain (3), Danielle Robertson (1), Bria Pierce (1) and Alexis Hill (1) have also started games for NSU this season.
 
TATE NAMED ALL-MIAA HONORABLE MENTION
Fontana Tate was named to the All-MIAA Honorable Mention team last season. She picked up her first-career postseason accolade after leading the Northeastern State women's basketball team to an eighth-place finish in the MIAA. Tate has played in 25 games and made 24 starts for NSU this year. She leads Northeastern State in scoring (11.2 ppg), minutes played (31.0 mpg), three-point field-goal percentage (.389), and total steals (23). She has also posted a .389 shooting percentage, 4.8 rebounds per game and 1.4 assists per game this season. She has scored in double figures in 16 games, which includes a career-high 23-point effort on Jan. 22 in a 59-44 upset victory over then-No. 2 Emporia State. She also had nine rebounds in the blowout victory over the then-undefeated Lady Hornets. She also recorded her first career double-double on Feb. 22 when she posted 18 points and 10 rebounds against Central Oklahoma.
 
NSU's GIPSON IN 16TH SEASON
NSU's Randy Gipson (Kentucky, '79) is in his 16th season as the RiverHawks head coach. He entered the year with a 289-146 record at NSU. He has recorded 14 winning seasons at Northeastern State, and he has led the program to seven appearances in the NCAA Championship. His NSU women's basketball teams have earned two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances (2004, '10), while advancing to the NCAA Second Round each of the last two seasons (2011-12). Gipson came to Northeastern State in 1999-00, and he captured six Lone Star Conference North Division Championships in a 12-year span. He also led NSU to the 2003 LSC Tournament Championship, while finishing runner up in the conference tournament on three occasions (2004, '05, '10). He has coached two All-Americans (Jasmine Webb, Taylor Lewis), one MIAA Player of the Year, two LSC Players of the Year and numerous all-conference players during his tenure at Northeastern State.The 2012-13 campaign was the first for the RiverHawks in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, and the squad finished second in the regular season with a 14-4 league mark. The team landed in the top 10 nationally in six statistical categories, including fewest turnovers per game (3rd), fewest personal fouls per game (4th), three-point field-goal percentage (7th), assist-turnover ratio (9th), scoring defense (10th), and three-point field goals per game (10th). The 2013-14 team placed eighth overall in the conference and advanced to the MIAA Championship quarterfinals. He began his career at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NEO), where he spent 11 years leading the Lady Norse. He took NEO to a National Runner-up finish in 1991, and he was named Region II Coach of the Year three times.
 
GIPSON ADDS A PAIR OF GUARDS FOR 2015-16
Northeastern State coach Randy Gipson announced the signing of two guards for the 2015-16 season. The two new additions to the RiverHawks program will come from Oklahoma and Missouri. Long enters her senior season at Sparta High School in Sparta, Missouri, as a three-time all-state performer. She has twice been named to the Associated Press All-State First Team, and she was named to the AP All-State Second Team freshman year. She was named the SouthWest Conference League MVP as a freshman. She is also a two-time All-SWCL First Team performer, a three-time all-district first team athlete and a three-time Missouri Basketball Coaches Association All-State First Team honoree. She has averaged at least 21.1 points per game all three years, and she shot 65 percent from the field (190-for-293) as a junior. She converted 28 of 54 3-point attempts last year (52 percent) and was also an 80 percent free-throw shooter (124-for-155). Long enters her senior season with 1,693 career points. She is the daughter of Chris and Charity Long, and her high school coach is Mike Plante. Kylie Looney will come to Tahlequah after playing out her career at Adair High School in Adair, Oklahoma, under the tutelage of Scott Winfield. She has earned numerous accolades during her career, including all-conference and all-metro honors. Over the course of her first three seasons, she has played in 87 games and has scored 1,161 points. She averaged a little less than 15 points a game last season to go along with 3.3 rebounds per game, 2.3 steals per game and 1.6 assists per game. Looney has converted 171 3-point field goal attempts in her career. She helped lead her team to the state championship tournament last season. She is the daughter of Chell and Jamie Looney.
 
NSU SELECTED 8TH IN MIAA PRESEASON POLLS
The Northeastern State women's basketball team was picked to finish eighth in the MIAA by the league coaches. The RiverHawks earned 83 points and are projected to finish one place higher than their ninth-place effort from a season ago. Emporia State topped the coaches' poll with 160 points total and five first-place votes. Northeastern State finished 11-17 last season and 7-12 in the MIAA. The RiverHawks return their two top scorers in senior guards Fontana Tate (11.2 ppg) and Chelsey Beathard (9.0 ppg).
 
TICKETS REQUIRED FOR ENTRY IN 2014-15
All fans wishing to attend an NSU home basketball contest this season will be required to show a ticket prior to entering the facilities. NSU students and faculty/staff will still be allowed free admittance, but NSU ID's will no longer be accepted as a form of entry. Tickets can be purchased at NSU's ticketing Web site, goriverhawkstickets.com. NSU students and faculty/staff can access goriverhawkstickets.com and secure their free tickets (either printable or downloaded to your smart phone) through their goNSU accounts. For questions regarding ticket options, please contact Brynn Hamner at 918.444.3901.
 
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.
 
THE EVENT CENTER
The Northeastern State basketball programs are in their second season competing in the 78,200 square foot NSU Event Center. The newly-constructed facility houses the basketball offices and the NSU athletic administration. The project has cost north of $21.2 million and the arena is located adjacent to Doc Wadley Stadium on the north side of the NSU campus.
 
-GoRiverHawksGo.com-