By Mark Schmetzer
Enquirer contributor

Miami's women's basketball team started aggressively Thursday against Northern Illinois - and it paid off in a school record.

Senior guard Heather Cusick scored the first four points, and her second basket - a 12-foot jumper from the right wing - moved her past Monica Niemann for first place on the RedHawks' career scoring list.

"It just so happened that I hit the first couple shots, and that put me over the top," said Cusick, who finished with a team-high 17 points in Miami's 70-64 victory in DeKalb, Ill.

The RedHawks (11-10, 6-4 Mid-American) visit Bowling Green at 1 p.m. today.

Cusick, a Kokomo, Ind., native, has 1,622 points in 108 games, 14 more than Niemann scored while playing in 112 games from 1991-95. Cusick also is MU's career leader in assists and 3-pointers.

"I really hadn't thought about it," Cusick said of the record. "Going into the season, our goal was to go out and win games and the (Mid-American Conference) championship, and the records would fall into place. ... Now we can focus on our last six games and the MAC Tournament."