Ferris State Battles To The Finish In Close Setback To Wayne State

Postgame Highlights & Interview 

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University women's basketball squad battled to the finish, but came up short in a 78-75 setback to the Wayne State Warriors in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) opener on Thursday (Dec. 5) evening inside Jim Wink Arena.

The Bulldogs took a six-point halftime lead in the showdown of 5-1 teams, but were outscored 25-16 in the third period while battling foul trouble as WSU held on down the stretch for the win.

FSU led by as many as nine points in the first half as the Bulldogs forced 27 turnovers for the game and outscored Wayne State 34-18 in points off those mistakes.

However, the Warriors managed to win the rebounding battle 41-31 overall and limited FSU to only 39.4% shooting, including a seven-of-29 (24.1%) figure from behind the three-point stripe.

Two of the Bulldogs' top scorers, junior guard Adrienne Anderson and freshman guard Mallory McCartney, both were hampered by foul trouble in the final half as Wayne State managed to get to the free throw line 27 times, converting at a 77.8% clip.

Anderson still finished as FSU's leading scorer with 18 points while senior forward Riley Blair had 15 points and McCartney chipped in 13 points. FSU also got 12 points from junior guard Shaniya Huggins, who also finished with eight assists.

Wayne State, though, shot 44.8% overall and received a game-high 24 points from Sadia Johnson along with 18 points and 12 rebounds in a double-double effort from Grace George. Nastassja Chambers chipped in 13 points and Sam Cherney scored 10 points while grabbing nine boards as WSU improved to 6-1 on the year.

Overall, Ferris State compiled 14 steals, including eight from Blair, in addition to four blocked shots and 19 assists. The Warriors had 15 assists, seven steals and six blocks in the game.

Ferris State, which is now 5-2 overall, will host nationally sixth-ranked Ashland in GLIAC action on Saturday (Dec. 7) evening with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m. (ET) inside Wink Arena.