'BUILDING BLOCKS': Despite loss, NSU makes strides in Ferguson's first year

Mar. 7—While the Northeastern State Lady RiverHawks season came to an end in the first round of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, the team made strides this season.

First-year head coach Keith Ferguson brought the RiverHawks back to the playoffs for the first time since 2018. NSU's 14-14 record gave them the No. 8 seed and a first-round showdown with Emporia State.

"It was a great season; I thought we really did some good things that hadn't been done in a while and gave us some building blocks for next year," Ferguson said. "It is a disappointing way to end the year, but it's a part of life and a part of basketball. We have to pick up the pieces and get better next year."

While the RiverHawks fell short to the ESU in the first round, Ferguson was proud of the strides the team made this season. ESU got off to a quick start, taking a double-digit lead early. Despite this, NSU struggled shooting from field goal range, with just 31% for their lowest mark of the season.

Despite battling back and making it a one-possession game a handful of times, the RiverHawks fell 72-58 on Wednesday, March 6.

"It's a tough pill to swallow; I thought we competed hard. We didn't show up, and they made some tough shots. Sometimes that's part of life and part of basketball," Ferguson said. "You can't freak out early and you have to maintain the course. We got down 13 early and we cut it down to two or three a few different times, but we just couldn't get over the hump. We weren't taking care of things; credit Emporia they made more plays than we did."

While the season came to an end early, the RiverHawks made some big strides during this season, thanks to play from a pair of upperclassmen. Junior Courtney Lee and senior Hailey Jones each earned a place on the All-MIAA Team as honorable mentions.

Jones led the way this season for NSU, with 12.5 points per game. Along with being the leading scorer, Jones ranks second with an average of 4.3 rebounds a game. Lee ranked second with 10.9 points per game, while leading with six rebounds a game.

"They got us going. They were two kids that, when we needed buckets, they were able to get us through some big moments. I am excited about the year they have; we are really proud of what they accomplished this year," Ferguson said.

After his first season as head coach with the RiverHawks, Ferguson was able to bring a team in the bottom of the division to the playoffs. Now Ferguson will have to work with a decent amount of roster turnover. So far, Ferguson has signed eight freshmen for next season and is still looking for more players. One of Ferguson's signees is Tahlequah's Jaydyn Buttery.

NSU has six players set to graduate after this season.

"We will have a big group of new players coming in," Ferguson said. "We have a long way to go before talking expectations. We just need to get them on the same page and ready for MIAA play."

Ferguson looks at this season as the first step in building up the RiverHawks program.

"It's exciting and shows you how hard the kids work and how they wanted to buy into something," Ferguson said. "I am really proud of them and what they accomplished this season. We hope to get back and stay longer in the future."

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