PREVIEW: FSU Women's Basketball Hosts GVSU On Thursday At Wink Arena

This Week's Action: The Ferris State University women's basketball team wraps up the 2014-15 campaign by hosting archrival Grand Valley State in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play on Thursday (Feb. 26) night inside FSU's Jim Wink Arena. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. (ET) for the opening game of the league twinbill.

Media Coverage: Thursday's game will be broadcast locally by Sunny 97.3 FM and the Bulldog Sports Network. Rob Bentley and Sandy Gholston will call the action with the Meijer Pregame Show starting a half-hour prior to tipoff. In addition, the live audio broadcast will be accessible online. FSU will also offer a live pay-per-view video webcast online. For a full listing of links, including live internet stats, please visit FerrisStateBulldogs.com.

Follow On Twitter/Facebook: In addition to internet coverage, Bulldog fans can also follow the action via Twitter and Facebook with updates. Please visit www.facebook.com/FerrisWBasketball or www.twitter.com/FerrisWBBALL to follow the periodic posts and tweet-by-tweet coverage with scoring updates.

Senior Night: Thursday's contest will serve as FSU's annual "Senior Night" game with this year's senior class honored between games along with the men's basketball seniors. The class includes a pair of four-year letterwinners in Hannah Hoffman and Ashley Rando along with three-year letterwinner Kara Hess and fellow senior Heidi Highstreet. Additionally, two Bulldog juniors who will not return next year will also be recognized in Dena Droste and Destiney Robinson.

Big Night Of Action: In addition to serving as the annual "Senior Night" game, this Thursday's contest against the Lakers will also mark Faculty Appreciation Night with all current FSU faculty receiving free admission compliments of Meemic Insurance by contacting the ticket office at (231) 591-2888. Additionally, it will be Student-Athlete Night with Ferris State student-athletes invited and encouraged to attend the evening doubleheader to support the Bulldogs.

Looking Back: The Bulldogs posted a 10-14 overall record a year ago under head coach Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate, but won four of their last five games on the year. Ferris State welcomed back 11 squad members from a year ago, giving FSU a deeper and experienced unit in its third season under Lamoreaux-Tate's direction.

Double-Digit Wins: Ferris State's recent road victory at Lake Superior State on Feb. 14 gave FSU its 10th win of the year, marking the 18th time in the last 19 seasons in which FSU has accomplished the feat. The Bulldogs have a chance to finish with 12 wins by beating GVSU on Thursday.
   
The Records: Ferris State (11-13, 9-12 GLIAC) split two league games last week for the second consecutive weekend. FSU went on the road Thursday (Feb. 19) and played one of its most complete games of the year in a 69-49 victory at Hillsdale, which was Ferris State's second-straight win overall. The Bulldogs then dropped a close 64-58 decision to Saginaw Valley State on Saturday (Feb. 21) after holding a two-point lead at half.
   
Grand Valley State (18-7, 15-6 GLIAC) has won each of its last two contests to date and is coming off a 71-63 overtime home victory over Hillsdale last Saturday (Feb. 21) in Allendale. The Lakers presently are 12-2 at home this year, but only 6-5 on the road to date. GVSU has clinched a berth in the GLIAC Tournament.

Did You Know: Ferris State posted its most decisive victory of the season with a 77-48 road triumph over Saginaw Valley State on Jan. 31 in University Center, Mich. However, the Cardinals avenged the setback with last week's six-point win in Big Rapids.

Number Two In Nation: Ferris State sophomore guard Ally Christman has climbed to second in the nation in free throw percentage at 92.3% on the year. She's tops among all GLIAC players and only shy of national leader Annie Armstrong (96.1%) of Drury in the country.

FSU vs GVSU 2: Thursday's matchup between Ferris State and Grand Valley State will be the second meeting between the two West Michigan rivals this season. Earlier this year on Feb. 2, the Lakers pulled out a close 69-59 over the Bulldogs in the first matchup held inside the GVSU Fieldhouse Arena in Allendale.

Series History: GVSU holds a 57-28 advantage heading into Thursday's 86th encounter. The Lakers have claimed 15 of the last 25 series' matchups to date. A year ago, the Lakers won the first meeting 60-57 in Allendale before FSU captured a 59-56 win at home in Big Rapids in the final meeting of the year. GVSU previously swept FSU twice in 2012-13 by scores of 83-73 in Big Rapids (2/2/13) and 70-59 in Allendale (3/2/13). GVSU fell to FSU twice in 2011-12 as the Bulldogs recorded a 58-50 win at Wink Arena (1/28/12) along with a 46-44 regular-season finale triumph in Allendale (2/25/12). The two teams split two games in 2010-11 with GVSU posting a 69-62 win over FSU (1/29/11) in the "131 Showdown" at Van Andel Arena prior to Ferris State's exciting 65-62 triumph in the regular-season finale (2/26/11) at Wink Arena. FSU has won seven of the last 16 matchups overall.  

The Head Coach: Ferris State – Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate (Aquinas), 3rd season, 34-40 (.458) - (1-4 vs. GVSU).  A veteran coach with 27 years of experience on the sidelines and regarded as one of the state's top prep coaches prior to her FSU arrival two years ago, Lamoreaux-Tate spent the previous seven years as the varsity girls basketball coach at Grand Rapids Catholic Central High School where she guided the Cougars to a 167-19 cumulative record prior to her appointment as Ferris State's head coach in June 2012.

Preseason Listing: Ferris State was chosen to finish seventh in the 2014-15 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division Preseason Poll. Northern Michigan and Wayne State were voted divisional favorites for the 2014-15 GLIAC Women's Basketball season. In the North Division, NMU was picked first in the 2014-15 GLIAC Preseason Women's Basketball Poll with 13 first-place votes and 124 points. Michigan Tech was selected second with three first-place votes and 111 points. In third place was Grand Valley State with 77 points and three votes, Saginaw Valley State was fourth with 73 points, Hillsdale was fifth with 67 points, Northwood was sixth with 60 points, FSU came in seventh with 46 points and Lake Superior State was eighth with 18 points.

Preseason All-GLIAC: Ferris State junior forward/center Christina Branch (Grand Rapids/West Michigan Lutheran) was chosen to the Preseason All-GLIAC North Division Second Team as announced by the league office. Branch was the 2011-12 GLIAC Freshman of the Year after helping FSU to the NCAA Division II Tournament in her initial season, but missed all of 2012-13 due to injury before coming back last season.

Lost All-American: Ferris State lost only a single senior from last year's team in three-time All-America guard Sarah DeShone, a native of Elkhart, Ind. Last year marked the third consecutive year in which DeShone also claimed first team All-GLIAC status.  She received WBCA Honorable Mention All-America honors each of the last three seasons and was also chosen as a Division II Women's Basketball All-American her final season. Currently, she's serving this season as a student assistant coach on the Bulldog staff.

Bulldog All-Americans: Former Bulldog standout guard Sarah DeShone joined former FSU players Lucy DeMartin and Tianna Kirkland along with Rachel Folcik and Erin Miller as the only players in the program's history to attain any type of All-America accolades when she received honorable mention accolades for the first time in 2011-12. DeMartin was honored as a Division II Women's Basketball Bulletin Honorable Mention selection in 2003-04 while Kirkland was a Division II Women's Basketball Bulletin Third Team All-America pick during the 2000-01 campaign. Both Miller and DeMartin were among the Division II Kodak/WBCA All-America Honorable Mention nominees in 2003-04. Folcik was chosen to the WBCA Honorable Mention All-American team in 2006-07 along with the State Farm Coaches All-America Team in 2007.

Assistant Coach Back: Ferris State head coach Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate returns her full-time assistant coach on the sidelines this season as Shea Mead is back for his second campaign. He previously spent two seasons as a graduate assistant coach in the women's basketball program at NCAA Division I Central Michigan.  The Chippewas made the school's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 29 years in 2012-13 and won the Mid-American Conference Tournament while registering their third-straight 20-plus win campaign under head coach Sue Guevara. A Grand Rapids native, Mead competed on the prep level at Grand Rapids Catholic Central High School during Lamoreaux-Tate's stint as the Cougars' head girls coach.

Back In Time: Ferris State finished the 2011-12 women's basketball season with a memorable 23-7 overall record, which matched the school record set previously in 2006-07 for most wins in a campaign. FSU also reached the semifinals at the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Tournament three seasons ago and claimed the schools second-ever GLIAC North Division Championship. FSU finished with a 17-2 mark in GLIAC play in addition to earning conference tournament runner-up honors.

Bulldog Tradition: The Ferris State women's basketball program is midst its 40th season of varsity competition and has compiled a 517-525 (.496) all-time mark. The Bulldogs won their first previous GLIAC crown, advanced to their first NCAA-II Regional Tournament and recorded the nation's highest grade point average in 1999-2000. FSU, which claimed GLIAC Tourney runner-up honors for the third time in 2011-12, has posted 10 wins or more in 18 of the last 19 seasons.

The Bulldog Roster: Ferris' 2014-15 roster includes four seniors, four juniors, four sophomores and two freshmen. Seven of the 15 players are primarily backcourt players while the remaining eight are forwards or centers. Eleven of the 14 players on the Bulldogs' roster hail from Michigan with one each from Indiana and Ohio along with junior college transfer Natalia Bukur of Russia, who spent last season at Kirtland CC.

The Head Coach: FSU Athletics Director Perk Weisenburger officially announced the appointment of Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate as the Bulldogs' new head coach on June 14, 2012. She became only the sixth head coach in the history of Bulldog women's basketball and replaced former head coach Tracey Dorow, who accepted the head coaching position at NCAA Division I Valparaiso University. In her seven seasons at Grand Rapids Catholic Central, she recorded 23 wins or more six consecutive years, including back-to-back 27-1 marks in 2008-09 and 2009-10.  Her 2009-10 team claimed the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) Class B State Championship.

All-GLIAC Honoree: Ferris State's Christina Branch was a second-team All-GLIAC honoree and the GLIAC Freshman of the Year in 2011-12.  Branch also claimed GLIAC All-Defensive Team recognition the same season.

GLIAC Tournament Berth: Ferris State made its 14th consecutive GLIAC Tournament appearance in the first campaign under head coach Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate in 2012-13 before narrowly missing the field last year.  The Bulldogs had advanced to the semifinals in each of their four previous trips prior to the 2012-13 campaign, but suffered a narrow 68-59 road loss to Wayne State in the quarterfinal round at the Matthaei Complex in Detroit in her initial season at the helm.

About Ferris State: Ferris State University is a NCAA Division II school located in Big Rapids, Mich., with an enrollment of 14,560. The Bulldogs are a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). Big Rapids is located in West Michigan approximately 60 miles north of Grand Rapids or 40 miles west of Mount Pleasant, Mich.  FSU also plays NCAA Division I men's ice hockey in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) and reached the 2012 NCAA Frozen Four along with the national championship game.

Sunny 97.3: Nearly all 2014-15 Bulldog conference games will be carried live thru a broadcast partnership between FSU Athletics and Sunny 97.3 FM.  Rob Bentley and Sandy Gholston will call the action starting with the "Bulldog Pregame" show a half-hour prior to tipoff.  Sunny 97.3 and the Bulldog Sports Network will carry a majority of the home and away basketball contests this campaign with the broadcasts streamed live online at www.FerrisStateBulldogs.com.

Bulldog Sports Network: Fans can follow all the action of Ferris State Basketball live online via the Bulldog Sports Network multimedia portal again this season.  A live audio and video pay-per-view webcast in HD will be offered for nearly all home games with free audio for road conference contests.  The package also includes live stats, live chat and a live blog at select times. Visit www.FerrisStateBulldogs.com for more info.

Home Ticket Information: Single-game tickets for the 2014-15 home campaign are currently on sale now.  Fans are encouraged to buy tickets in advance this season. For more info on ticket sales, please contact the FSU Athletics Ticket Office at (231) 591-2888 or visit www.FerrisStateBulldogs.com.

More Media Coverage: Ferris State Basketball will be featured throughout the year as part of the "Bulldog Sports Update", which will air Monday thru Friday at 7:30 a.m. (ET) on Sunny 97.3 FM.  Additionally, head coach Colleen Lamoreaux-Tate and selected student-athletes will make periodic weekly appearances during the season on the Ferris Sports Update TV show, which is available across Northern Michigan on Fox 32 along with Comcast Xfinitiy in Michigan and other sources, including online at FerrisStateBulldogs.com.

Live Internet Stats: "Live Stats" of all 2014-15 Ferris State games will be provided in progress via the internet. Visit the site at www.FerrisStateBulldogs.com and click the "Live Stats" icon to access.