TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – Washburn ended the second quarter on a 7-2 run to tie the game at halftime, but Northeastern State shot 52 percent from the field and made 11-of-12 from the free throw line in the second half to defeat the Ichabods 60-53 in the MIAA opening game on Monday evening. The Ichabods will return home to continue conference play as they host Emporia State on Saturday at 1 p.m. in Lee Arena. 
  
Both teams started slowly as the first points of the game didn't come until the 7:06 mark when Natalia Figueroa drained a three-pointer for the Ichabods (3-3, 0-1 MIAA). The RiverHawks got on the board with a pair of free throws with 4:59 on the clock to start an 8-0 run while holding Washburn scoreless for just over five minutes. Trailing 10-4 with 1:50 left in the opening period, the Ichabods regained the lead with a 7-0 run. The RiverHawks (4-1, 1-0 MIAA) hit a three-pointer with two seconds left to go back up 13-11 at the end of the first quarter. 
  
Similar to the first quarter, both teams struggled to score early as Mackenzie Gamble made the first basket 3:04 into the period to knot up the score at 13. Northeastern State broke the tie with a 9-4 run to take a 22-17 advantage with 1:53 left in the opening half. Washburn ended the run with a three-pointer by Gamble and after the Ichabod defense forced a turnover on NSU's ensuing possession, Aubree Dewey made a layup to even the score again at 22. The RiverHawks got a second-chance layup to fall and went up by two, but their lead was short-lived as Lakyn Schieferecke hit a jumper with eight seconds left to tie up the game at 24 at halftime. 
 
In the third quarter, Dewey made 10 of Washburn's 12 points and gave the Ichabods a two-point lead twice, but Northeastern State went 5-for-9 from the floor and 7-for-8 from the free throw line to outscore WU by five and take a 41-36 lead into the final period.
 
Washburn trailed by 10 within the first 50 seconds in the fourth quarter before trimming the deficit down to six, 46-40, at the 8:12 mark. That would be as close as the Ichabods would get for the remainder of the game, though, as the RiverHawks went up by as many as 12 points. Washburn fought until the end and scored five points in the final four seconds, but it wasn't enough as the Ichabods fell by seven.
 
Washburn shot above 40 percent in three of the fourth quarters and finished the game with a 44.2 field goal percentage while Northeastern State shot slightly less at a 40.4 clip. WU made 4-of-11 from deep while NSU made 3-of-12. A big difference maker in the game was free throws as Northeastern State converted on 19-of-20 from the charity stripe while Washburn went just 3-for-8. The RiverHawks recorded 10 more rebounds than the Ichabods, 35-25.
 
Dewey made 9-of-14 from the field and led all players with 18 points and handed out a team-best three assists. Gamble also finished in double-figures with 11 points as she made 3-of-5 from deep. Figueroa finished with nine points. Macy Doebele had four rebounds to lead the team. 
 
Three RiverHawks finished in double-figure points led by Jaylee Kindred's 16. She also helped the team defensively with three steals and three blocks. Courtney Lee had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Ashton Hackler also recorded 12 points.