---Karyn Creager hopes to write another chapter in the NKU record book for free-throw shooting this week. The senior guard enters Thursday having made 26 consecutive free throws, one shy of tying her own school record set two years ago.

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - A trip to DeSimone Gymnasium has not been a pleasant experience for the Northern Kentucky University women's basketball team the past two years while visiting Kenosha, Wis., and the Norse resume Great Lakes Valley Conference play in that same venue Thursday against Wisconsin-Parkside at 6:30 p.m.

Two years ago, NKU suffered a 76-56 loss to Wisconsin-Parkside in DeSimone Gymnasium. Last season, the visiting Norse saw their 16-game winning streak halted by the Rangers during a shocking 70-62 loss.

NKU enters Thursday's game with a 7-3 overall record. The Norse are 1-2 in the GLVC and ranked 18th nationally in the NCAA Division II poll.

NKU will conclude the two-game GLVC road trip Saturday with a showdown at Lewis in Romeoville, Ill. Lewis is coming off a win over defending NCAA Division II national champion Grand Valley State, and the Flyers own a 10-2 record. Lewis leads the GLVC East with a 3-1 mark.

Both games can be heard live on WIOK (107.5 FM) and on the Internet at www.nku.edu/~athletics.

ONE FOR THE RECORD: NKU senior guard Karyn Creager can tie her own school record by making her next free throw. Creager has made 26 consecutive free throws going into Thursday's game. Two years ago, the Leipsic, Ohio, native hit 27 straight from the line to set the NKU record.

Ironically, Creager's streak of 27 consecutive made free throws came to a halt during a 76-56 loss to Wisconsin-Parkside in DeSimone Gymnasium on Feb. 17, 2005. Creager’s school-record streak ended at 27 when she missed the second of two free throws with 6:11 left in that game.

GRAHAM NEARS 1,000 POINTS: NKU senior post player Karmen Graham needs 18 points to join the Norse's 1,000-point club. Graham scored a team-leading 17 points in just 18 minutes of action as the Norse cruised past Mercyhurst last Friday at the Florida Southern Holiday Classic.

BALANCED SCORING: As a team, the Norse have four players averaging in double figures, led by Angela Healy's 11.8 points per game. Brittany Winner averages 11.4 ppg, Karyn Creager 10.3 ppg, while Katie Butler is averaging 10.0 points off the bench.

EFFICIENT NORSE: NKU leads the GLVC in field-goal shooting (50.5 percent) and 3-point shooting (40.2 percent). The Norse are second in free-throw shooting (78.3 percent). Katie Butler (57.1 percent) and Angela Healy (55.3 percent) stand atop the conference individually in field-goal percentage. Butler also leads the conference in 3-point shooting at a 54.5 percent clip. The Norse also lead the GLVC in scoring offense (77.0 points).

---Katie Butler leads the GLVC in 3-point shooting at 54.5 percent, and she is scoring 10.0 ppg off the bench for NKU. The senior forward from Findlay, Ohio, also ranks No. 1 in the GLVC in field-goal percentage at .571.

BLOCK PARTY: As a team, NKU continues to lead the GLVC in blocked shots with 57 rejections in 10 games. The Norse average almost two more blocks per game than Southern Indiana, which is No. 2 in the GLVC while blocking an average of four shots per game. Cassie Brannen is NKU's leader with 18 blocked shots, while Katie Butler has rejected 11 attempts.

ABOUT WISCONSIN-PARKSIDE: The Rangers are 9-3 overall, 2-2 in the GLVC. Wisconsin-Parkside, however, owns an impressive 61-52 road win at Quincy and narrowly lost at Southern Illinois at Edwardsville.

The Rangers are led in scoring by Ashley Ferguson, who is pouring in 18.2 points per game. Transfer Kari Score averages 12.2 ppg and 6.8 rebounds per contest.

THE LAST TIME AGAINST THE RANGERS: On Feb. 26, 2006, Wisconsin-Parkside pulled off a shocker with a 70-62 win over NKU in the DeSimone Gymnasium. The Rangers, who entered the game hoping to avoid a 20-loss season, improved to 7-19 overall. In the process, Wisconsin-Parkside ended NKU’s winning streak at 16 games and knocked off the Norse for the second straight year at the DeSimone Gymnasium. NKU entered the game ranked 20th nationally.

Carrie Schieve scored 27 points to lead Wisconsin-Parkside to the upset. She was 8-for-16 from the field, dished out two assists and had two steals in 40 minutes of action. Schieve also used 9-for-10 shooting from the free-throw line to key the win. The Rangers employed a 2-3 zone defense against NKU for much of the game, but the Norse were just 2-for-12 from 3-point range.

NKU committed 19 turnovers and allowed Wisconsin-Parkside to shoot 52.2 percent from the field in the second half. It marked the Norse’s first loss since Dec. 20, when Hillsdale (Mich.) posted a 58-52 win at NKU.

Karmen Graham scored 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead NKU. Brittany Winner added 13 points for the Norse, who shot 51.1 percent from the field. Nicole Chiodi scored 12 points and grabbed five rebounds, while teammate Cassie Brannen came off the bench and added 11 points.

THE LAST TIME AGAINST LEWIS: On Feb. 25, 2006, Katie Butler celebrated her 21st birthday by giving her NKU teammates a lesson in long-range shooting during the Norse’s game against Lewis. With NKU trailing 22-17, Butler came off the bench and made two 3-point shots to ignite a 16-2 run that gave the Norse a 33-24 lead. She finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and four steals as NKU coasted to a 75-65 win over Lewis in the Neil Carey Arena.

Butler, who scored eight points in the first half, also added two assists in 21 minutes of action. She finished 3-for-6 from 3-point range. Karmen Graham and Brittany Winner combined for 34 points and nine assists to lead the Norse offensive attack. Graham scored 18 points and had three assists for NKU. Winner added 16 points and six assists.