Southeast Missouri State women's basketball team tries to extend winning streak to four games

~ The Redhawks basketball team visits Tennessee State tonight

The Southeast Missouri State women's basketball team continues to go where no Southeast squad had gone for quite a while.

The Redhawks hope to keep stamping themselves as a surprise Ohio Valley Conference contender when they face Tennessee State at 7 p.m. today in Nashville, Tenn.

Southeast is 8-8 overall and 2-1 in OVC play. TSU is 5-9 and 1-2.

"We're playing with a lot of confidence right now," Southeast coach Ty Margenthaler said.

With good reason.

The Redhawks already have surpassed their victory total from Margenthaler's first season last year, when they went 7-22. Southeast has not won more than eight games in a season since the 2008-09 campaign.

Southeast is riding its first three-game winning streak since the 2008-09 season and owns its best 16-game record since the 2007-08 campaign, when the Redhawks won their most recent OVC championship.

"It's exciting. I'm really happy for the team that we're finally experiencing some success, especially for the players who have been here for a while," Margenthaler said. "But we've got a long way to go. We have to keep getting better."

Southeast won the only meeting with TSU last season, 50-39 in Cape Girardeau. The Tigers went 9-20 overall and 5-11 in OVC play a year ago. They tied for eighth in what was then an 11-team league, while Southeast finished 10th.

Jasmin Shuler, a 5-foot-8 senior guard, leads a balanced TSU offensive attack with an average of 10.1 points per game.

The Tigers are averaging 58.3 points per contest but have averaged a whopping 77.3 points in their three OVC games.

Kesi Hess, a 5-10 senior guard, is averaging a team-leading 15.7 points in OVC play and has hit 11 of 18 3-pointers during those three games.

Southeast next will host defending OVC regular-season and tournament champion Tennessee-Martin at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in a key West Division matchup.

The Skyhawks were picked first in the West Division preseason poll, while Southeast was tabbed for last among the six squads.