OTAHKIANS' RECOGNITION WAS A LONG TIME COMING

"How about the Otahkians!" That phrase has never gotten much of a workout. It has lately. The Southeast Missouri State University women's basketball team, which has competed for years in the shadow of the higher-profile men's squad, is getting some due recognition. The Otahkians have made it to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Division II tournament and host a quarterfinal game Saturday. We commend the team for its season's success and growing celebrity, and wish the women well in attempting to reach the Final Four.

Though having won an average of 24 games a season since 1983, the Otahkians have played in relative obscurity. Crowds at their games resembled family reunions, with a few hundred relatives and friends scattered in a spacious gymnasium. Many local basketball fans only knew the team's closing-minute performances, looking on as they filed in to the Show Me Center early for an Indian game.

Devotees of the Otahkians, those who populated the sparse crowds for many seasons, must be especially gratified to see the team's emergence into the limelight. It is little wonder many former Otahkians attended last weekend's South-Central Regional, to celebrate the attention being heaped on their successors. It must be a kick for long-time fans to see team members getting autograph requests at a local shopping center. Southeast's two tournament games each set attendance records for women's basketball here. Otahkian games are suddenly "must-have" tickets.

Much of the credit for the team's arrival goes to Ed Arnzen, a coach the last quarter-century and the Otahkians' mentor the last eight. His low-key manner, patience and insistence on fundamentals have helped his women's teams compile a 192-46 record at Southeast. He has been named conference "Coach of the Year" three times, including this year. His teams have been NCAA Tournament participants seven times, though Saturday's game represents the first time in the Elite Eight.

The Otahkians play the West Regional champions, California Poly-Pomona, at the Show Me Center at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Almost 1,900 people attended the regional finals here last weekend. Though students remain out of town for spring break, it would be nice for the community to push the Otahkians to a new attendance record at the quarterfinal. The team's development as a hot ticket has been a long time coming.