FSU's Tricia Principe looks for an open teammate at SVSU (Photo by Rob Bentley)
FSU's Tricia Principe looks for an open teammate at SVSU (Photo by Rob Bentley)

Ferris Women Drop Road Game At SVSU

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Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University women's basketball squad built an eight-point second half advantage, but could not hold on in dropping a narrow 70-67 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) decision to Saginaw Valley State on Saturday (Jan. 8) at O'Neill Arena in University Center, Mich.

The Bulldogs led by eight with 11:47 remaining, however the Cardinals outscored FSU 29-28 in the final half to notch the win.

Saginaw Valley State held a seven-point edge with 3:58 to play before the Bulldogs eventually cut the deficit to only two with 39 seconds left.  Down three, FSU had a chance to tie, but missed a potentialy tying three-pointer with 10 seconds to go.  SVSU then missed a pair of free throws, however the Bulldogs could not secure the defensive board as the Cardinals held on for the win. 

FSU dropped to 6-8 overall and 2-6 in GLIAC action with its third consecutive setback while the Cardinals improved to 4-8 overall and 2-4 in the conference.

Ferris had four players reach double-figure scoring in the loss with senior guard Becci Houdek (Canton) pacing FSU with a team-best 15 points.  Junior guard Tricia Principe (Kalamazoo/Mattawan) added 12 points, freshman guard Sarah DeShone (Elkhart, Ind./Jimtown) netted 11 points and senior forward Tiara Adams (Lansing/Waverly) tallied 10 points in the loss.

The Bulldogs shot only 39.3% (24-61) for the night and were eight-of-14 (57.1%) from three-point range along with 11-of-16 (68.8%) at the free throw stripe.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals converted 26-of-58 (44.8%) field goals and were seven-of-20 (35%) beyond the arc in addition to 11-of-20 (55%) at the line.

SVSU was paced by Brittany Burkhardt with a game-high 20 points.  Jasmine Kennedy added 17 points, Kristen Greene totaled 11 points and Cheritee Green had 10 points.

Ferris came up with 17 assists as both Principe and Houdek netted five apiece for the Bulldogs.  FSU also had eight steals and two blocked shots with SVSU managing eight steals and three blocks to go with 15 assists.

Overall, the Bulldogs were outrebounded 42-37 although both teams had a good night on the offensive glass as the Cardinals totaled 18 caroms and FSU had 16 boards at the offensive end.

The loss marked the fifth-straight time the Bulldogs have lost on the road to the Cardinals at O'Neill Arena. It was also only FSU's sixth loss to SVSU in the last 24 series' encounters.

Ferris State will have a week off before returning to the floor next Saturday, Jan. 15, with a conference road tilt versus the Northwood Timberwolves in Midland, Mich. Tipoff for the women's contest at the Bennett Sports Center is set for 6 p.m. (ET).

Bulldog Bites: The game featured four lead changes with both teams surging ahead twice apiece ....... The score was tied four times ...... The Cardinals' bench outscored the FSU reserves 22-16 for the game ....... SVSU outscored FSU 24-22 in the paint and 18-14 in second chance scoring ...... Junior guard Kelsey DeNoyelles (Mt. Pleasant/Sacred Heart) had a game-high 10 rebounds for the Bulldogs ....... Both Becci Houdek and Tricia Principe made four three-pointers apiece ....... SVSU improved to 43-30 all-time versus the Bulldogs with the victory.