Big Northwood Surge Leads Timberwolves Past Bulldogs In GLIAC Women's Play

Contribution From Cody Carlson
FerrisStateBulldogs.com

Big Rapids, Mich. – The Ferris State University women's basketball squad started strong, but in the end the Northwood Timberwolves responded to post a 84-60 triumph over the Bulldogs in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) action on Thursday (Jan. 22) night at FSU's Jim Wink Arena.

Ferris State jumped out to an early edge and led by nine points with 8:28 to go in the first half before Northwood came back to record a 34-25 halftime edge. They pushed their lead to 23 points midway thru the second half and led by as many as 28 en route to the victory.

The Bulldogs were unable to mount a comeback as the Timberwolves heated up in the second half, shooting 57.7% over the final 20 minutes of action.

Ferris State dropped to 7-7 overall and 5-6 in the GLIAC with the setback while Northwood moved to 12-5 overall and 8-3 in league play.

Junior forward/center Christina Branch led the Bulldogs in scoring for the second-straight game with 15 points and capped off a double-double showing by bringing down 12 boards. Junior guard Katie Mavis chipped in 13 points for the Bulldogs and senior forward Heidi Highstreet added 10 points in the setback.

However, Northwood had four individuals finish in double figures in the contest. Gabrielle Rivette filled the stat sheet as she led the Timberwolves with 21 points, five rebounds and eight assists. Sarah Susan added 17 points while Lauren Robak and Taylor Craymer finished with 14 and 10 points, respectively, to round things out.

FSU finished shooting just 34.4% from the field on the night and was two-of-nine (22.2%) from downtown along with 16-of-23 (69.6%) from the charity stripe.

Behind their strong second-half shooting figure, the Timberwolves finished shooting 45.8% from the field for the game. They also connected on a staggering 12-of-23 (52.2%) from the three-point line, including seven-of-10 from the three-point line in the second half. They hit 18-of-21 (85.7%) free throw attempts in the contest.

The Bulldogs did own the rebounding edge 44-35 over the Timberwolves and they recorded 22 offensive boards to just 11 for Northwood on the offensive glass, which led to a 22-9 margin in second chance production.

Northwood, though, forced 13 Ferris State turnovers and posted a 14-7 advantage in points off miscues while adding five steals. They also added five blocked shots on the defensive end and finished the game with only eight turnovers.

Ferris State tallied 11 assists, which featured a team-high three dimes from Mavis in addition to four steals and six blocks. Senior center Hannah Hoffman led in blocks with four while Branch paced the Bulldogs in steals with two.

On the opposite side, the Wildcats finished the contest with 17 assists, including eight from Rivette and four from Sarah Susan. Rivette also led the Timberwolves in steals and blocks with two in each category.

Ferris State did outscore Northwood 32-26 in the paint for the game and received 29 points off the bench to 24 for the Timberwolves in a game that featured four lead changes.

The Bulldogs will continue their three-game homestand by hosting Lake Superior State on Saturday (Jan. 24) at Jim Wink Arena. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. (ET) and it will be Special Olympics Day with local Special Olympians recognized during the event.