BIG RAPIDS, Mich. – The Wayne State University women's basketball squad (8-4 overall, 3-3 GLIAC) recorded its second conference road win of the season with a 76-72 triumph at Ferris State University (8-6 overall, 2-4 GLIAC) Thursday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The first quarter was back-and-forth with WSU holding the largest lead at five points (14-9).  The Bulldogs went on a 7-1 run to take the lead, before a late lay-up by junior Ja'Nae Williams (Detroit, Mich. / Martin Luther King) put the Warriors ahead 17-16 after 10 minutes.

Ferris State went on an 11-4 run to start the second quarter for its largest lead to that point (27-21).  After a Leah Humes bucket gave the hosts a 29-23 advantage, senior Payton Birchmeier (Corunna, Mich.) connected from three-point range and sophomore Nastassja Chambers (Ypsilanti, Mich. / Arbor Prep) converted an old-fashioned three-point play to knot the game at 29.

A jumper by junior Jessica Murphy (Oxford, Mich.) followed by a triple from senior Sara Ruhstorfer (Grand Blanc, Mich. / Flint Powers Catholic) concluded the 11-0 spurt by Wayne State.

Each team made a basket in the final 30 seconds before intermission giving WSU a 38-37 lead at halftime.

WSU began the second half on a 9-2 run for a 47-39 advantage.  Chambers led the way with a pair of buckets.

Ferris State made four free throws sandwiched around a triple by Chambers, but the Warriors still led 50-43 with under three minutes remaining in the third period.

Wayne State had an 8-7 scoring edge the rest of the quarter for a 58-50 lead heading into the final stanza.

Senior Shannon Wilson (West Bloomfield, Mich. / Bloomfield Hills) started the scoring in the final period with a triple giving WSU an 11-point margin (61-50) before Chambers added a field goal.  FSU's Alexis Bush drained a triple to cut the Warrior lead to 10 (63-53).

After a Wilson lay-up, Humes connected from beyond the arc twice in a row making it a four-point contest (65-61) with just over five minutes left.

Back-to-back WSU buckets by Williams and Chambers pushed the lead to eight (69-61), and Ruhstorfer hit from three-point range to complete the 7-0 spurt.

Bush scored the next five points before Bulldog Lilly George made two foul shots to cut the WSU advantage to four (72-68) with 74 seconds remaining.

Ruhstorfer scored four points in the final 17 seconds to secure the road victory.

TEAM STATS

Wayne State shot 42 percent (29-of-69) from the floor, while FSU was 25-of-70 (36 percent).  WSU was 7-of-22 (32 percent) from three-point range, with the Bulldogs connecting on 9-of-24 triple tries (38 percent). The Warriors shot 69 percent (11-of-16) from the foul line, while Ferris State was perfect from the charity stripe at 13-of-13.

Wayne State had a 44-42 edge in rebounding, along with a 42-22 advantage of points in the paint.  Both teams had 11 offensive rebounds, but the Warriors led 19-6 in second-chance points.

LEADING THE WARRIORS

Chambers had her first career double-double with career-highs of 26 points and 10 rebounds.  She also was credited with game-high totals of six assists and four steals.

Williams tallied her fourth career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.  Wilson had 14 points, while Ruhstorfer chipped in with 11 points off the bench.

LEADING THE BULLDOGS

Bush had 22 points and five assists, while George contributed 14 points.  Rachel McInerney had a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds.

UP NEXT

Wayne State will face Lake Superior State in a 1 p.m. start on Saturday from the Matthaei.  The game will be televised live on Comcast CN 900 with Sean Baligian, Rod Beard and Joe Abramson calling the action.