The Missouri Southern Women’s Basketball team went from a four-game winning streak to a four-game losing streak within the month of Janruary.

The MIAA is a tough conference and teams face a constant battle each game.

After the results from Saturday’s games, the Lions are one of three teams who have a conference record of 4-5.

If the Lions had got the win over Pittsburg State and Nebraska-Kearney, they would be ranked in the top five of the conference, instead of tied at eighth.

Associate Head Coach Ronda Hubbard says the team did not have the best performance last week, and has a lot to improve on.

“In the MIAA, every team is good in every sport, and, really, it is about the teams that can sustain the rigors and the grind of the season. When you have setbacks, you can fail forward quickly,” said Hubbard.

The Lions fell to the Northeastern State Riverhawks 69-45 on Saturday.

The Lions contended with the RiverHawks at the beginning of the first half, but could not hold on. At the end of the first half, the RiverHawks by 16.

Sophomore guard Nicole Hartzog, a transfer from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks,  scored 12 points in the second half. She knocked down two three-pointers in the first five minutes.

In addition to the two points Hartzog had in the first half, she ended the game with a career high of 14 points.

Senior Erin Rice also contributed to the game with 7 points.

Junior forward Dominique Mosley scored 6 points againist the RiverHawks. Mosley has scored a total of 37 in the past four games for the Lions.

The Lions did not knock down the simple shots and could not answer to the long range shooting from the RiverHawks, resulting the loss.  

The Lions shot 17 of 55 from the field and only got to the free throw line five times.

Shooting was not the only problem for the Lions on Saturday night against Northeastern.

“We have not come out with the energy, the focus, and most importantly the heart, that athletic heart that you need,” said Hubbard. “I think one of the problems, when you’re not shooting well in the game of basketball, sometimes it’s the extra pass,  I believe right now as a team we do not have enough people making the extra pass, so that we can turn a good shot into a great shot.”

The team is slow to get the ball to people, or fails to see the teammate who is more open, Hubbard said.

The Lions will work mainly on passing, shooting and other tactics this week to prepare for the games to come.

The Lions will compete against two tough teams on a two-game road trip this week.

Thursday they will travel to Topeka, Kan., to play number- one ranked Washburn.

Then Saturday the Lions will take on the  number eighth ranked Tigers at Fort Hays State. Last year the Lions defeated the Tigers at home and on the road.