OTAHKIANS POST EASY WIN IN FIRST EXHIBITION GAME

All in all, Southeast Missouri State University women's basketball coach Ed Arnzen was relatively pleased with his team's opening exhibition game.

The Otahkians had some rough spots -- as was to be expected -- but they still rolled past St. Louis Goldstar 78-59 in front of about 350 fans at the Show Me Center Sunday."Overall, I thought it was all right for our first time out," said Arnzen. "It was good to finally play because these exhibition games let you look at what you need to work on."You're going to have some breakdowns in these games. We did. Defensively, we were not sharp at all. We had trouble getting off screens. Offensively, we don't have very much in yet."Senior Paula Corder-King, last season's leading scorer and the nation's top free-throw shooter a year ago, led the Otahkians offensively with 15 points.

Tiffany Melis, a sophomore who played sparingly last year, came off the bench to score 14 points. She hit five of seven shots from the field, including four of six 3-pointers.

Sophomore center Pam Iversen, the third-leading scorer last year, added 12 points. Senior point guard Moneik Campbell and freshman Jennifer Gries both added eight points, Gries also pulling down six rebounds off the bench."I was very pleased with the shooting of Melis," Arnzen said. "I think our two sophomore post players (Iversen and Regan Hughston) were good. Gries looked very good for a freshman."Monica Steinhoff, a former sharpshooter at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, paced Goldstar with 19 points as she hit five of nine 3-pointers.

Former Southeast standout Renee Rogliardi, who now coaches high school basketball in the St. Louis area, scored nine points and pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.

Ex-Jackson High all-stater and former University of Missouri player Andrea Siemer added six points."It's always nice to come back here," said Rogliardi. "We don't really get a chance to practice. We shoot a little bit and then go play the games."Rogliardi said she enjoys playing with the Goldstar team, which primarily takes on regional colleges to help them get ready for the season."We have a good time," she said. "And it's good for the (college) teams."Goldstar actually led 7-0 early. The Otahkians took the lead for good with 7:05 left in the first half on a Corder-King 3-pointer.

Southeast led 43-34 at halftime and scored the first 11 points of the second half to break things open.

The Otahkians will have their final exhibition game Nov. 15, hosting the Ukraine National Team. The regular season tips off Nov. 19 in the Arkansas State Tournament.