Women's Basketball 12/23/2023 10:30:00 AM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Basketball to Play Northwood in Final Game of 2023

The Warriors will look to finish the non-conference slate with their eighth victory in nine games outside the GLIAC.

GAME STORYLINES
Wayne State will conclude the 2023 portion of its 2023-24 campaign with a trip north to battle Northwood University in Midland, Mich. Opening tip against the Timberwolves from the G-MAC is slated for 3 p.m. on Saturday, December 30, inside the Riepma Arena.

The contest is the final non-conference game of the regular season for the Warriors. WSU went 7-1 in the eight-prior match-ups against teams from outside the GLIAC this year.

Carrie Lohr earned her 200th victory as head coach of the Green and Gold with a 71-46 win vs. Findlay in the previous game on December 19.

SERIES HISTORY
Wayne State and Northwood have historically played a competitive all-time series since the first meeting on December 18, 1980, with WSU holding a 35-30 edge. The Warriors notched back-to-back wins over the Timberwolves on December 11, 2021 (62-59) and February 7, 2022 (81-65). That marked the first time since 2018 that either team secured consecutive victories.

The December 30th game will be the first between Wayne State and Northwood since NU departed for the G-MAC after the 2021-22 academic year. WSU went 31-25 in 56 conference games between the two schools. The Warriors are 12-19 on the road in Midland, including a 2-2 mark in the last four meetings at Riepma Arena.

SCOUTING THE TIMBERWOLVES
Northwood enters the contest with the Warriors at 5-4 overall after dropping a 68-43 decision at Northern Michigan on December 19. Similar to WSU's last opponent in Findlay, NU has played a GLIAC heavy non-conference slate. Wayne State will be the Timberwolves' seventh and final GLIAC opponent this season. Northwood is an even 3-3 in those six games against Saginaw Valley State, Lake Superior State, Ferris State, Grand Valley State, Davenport, and NMU.

NU has a balanced offensive attack, with all five primary starters averaging at least 9.3 points per game. The group is led by redshirt senior center Jayla Strickland at 12.2 PPG. Junior forward Maddie Voelker (11.3 PPG) and senior guard Alli Keyser (10.1 PPG) also average in double figures. Strickland leads Northwood in several other categories, including field goals made (44), rebounds (60), and blocked shots (7).

Senior guard Makenzie Todd has knocked down the most triples (18), while senior forward Ava DiMilla paces the squad in three-point percentage (.385 / 10-of-26) of those with at least 25 attempts. Senior guard Maizie Taylor is the primary facilitator of Northwood's offense, as her 47 assists are 25 more than anyone else on the Timberwolves.

Northwood's head coach is Autumn Haggadone in her third season at the helm of the program. She has a 37-28 overall record (.569) and a 25-18 conference ledger (.581), which includes one season in the GLIAC during the 2021-22 campaign.

LAST WEEKEND RECAP
The Warriors earned a 71-46 victory over the University of Findlay Oilers on December 19 at the Wayne State Fieldhouse. The result made Carrie Lohr the first women's basketball coach in program history to reach 200 wins. WSU led wire-to-wire for the 25-point triumph, and was ahead by as many as 29 late in the third quarter.

The Green and Gold's defense was on display in the first half, as they held UF to just six first quarter points and a 26 percent shooting percentage (7-of-27) in the opening 20 minutes. A key reason for the victory was in the three-point department. WSU made 39 percent of its triple tries (10-of-26), while limiting Findlay to just four three-pointers out of its 29 attempts (14 percent). McKenna Ferguson led the Warriors with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Shea Tripp contributed 11 points, including making all five of her free throw attempts. The junior forward added six assists and three steals to lead all players. 10 different Warriors scored points in the triumph.

FUGATE APPROACHING MILESTONES
Redshirt senior Becca Fugate is looking to follow in the footsteps of her head coach in making history this season. Fugate has scored 979 career points in five seasons with the Green and Gold and is looking to become the 19th Warrior to reach 1,000 career points. The guard has scored in double figures 49 times, with seven games of at least 20 points across her five-year collegiate career.

Monique Johnson is the all-time scoring leader in WSU history with 1,439 points between 1988 and 1993. Fugate sits 22nd on the list and needs 13 points to pass Lori Januszkiewicz (1982-94) and Shay Lewis (1995-98) for sole possession of 20th.

Fugate also played in her 113th career game in the win vs. Findlay, and will pass current all-time games played leader Brittany Streetman (118 GP between 2012 and 2016) on January 20, 2024, vs. Saginaw Valley State if she plays in each of the next six contests.

NATIONAL ATTENTION
Entering the holiday break, Wayne State ranks 21st out of 291 programs in three-pointers per game (8.0), 25th in three-point percentage (.360), 34th in assists per game (16.1), 39th in scoring offense (74.1 PPG), 41st in free throw percentage (.760), 42nd in steals per game (11.2), 45th in field goal percentage (.437), and 60th in scoring margin (10.1).

Individually, Kate McArthur and Shea Tripp rank tied-for-26th in the country in steals per game (2.9) and tied-for-30th in total steals (29). McArthur is also 60th in assists per game (4.2). Becca Fugate ranks 31st in three-point shooting (.435), with McKenna Ferguson 60th in free throw percentage (.862).

PACING THE GLIAC
Wayne State's 8-2 start to the season has put the squad in the upper echelon of the GLIAC for several team and individual categories. Following games on December 19 and entering the holiday break, WSU ranks second behind Ferris State in points per game (74.1), while third behind Michigan Tech and Parkside in three-point percentage (.360). The Warriors are fourth in the league in free throw percentage (.760) and fifth in field goal percentage (.437). In ball control categories, WSU is closely behind FSU in steals per game (11.2 to the Bulldogs' 11.6), while ranking third after FSU and UWP with 16.1 assists per game.

Kate McArthur's 42 assists are second in the GLIAC behind Mackenzie Holzwart's 43 from Northern Michigan, while Shea Tripp's 33 helpers places sixth overall. Tripp's 15.4 points per game is third behind FSU's Chloe Idoni (17.9 PPG) and NMU's Makaylee Kuhn (17.0). McArthur and Tripp rank fourth and seventh, respectively, in assists per game (McArthur – 4.2 APG / Tripp 3.3 APG). Both Warriors pace the conference in the steals department, as each have 29 total and 2.9 SPG. Gabi Lutchka and McKenna Ferguson rank highly in shooting categories. Lutchka leads the GLIAC in three-point shooting (.588) and is second in field goal percentage (.655). Ferguson ranks fifth with a .862 free throw percentage.

CONFERENCE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Becca Fugate and Shea Tripp have each been named GLIAC Offensive Player of the Week by the league office during the 2023-24 campaign. Fugate received the honor for the week of December 4 after averaging 16.5 points per game in the victories against Edinboro and D'Youville, while Tripp was recognized the following week (December 11) for back-to-back 26-point performances on the road at NMU and MTU. Both achieved Player of the Week for the first time in their collegiate careers.

WARRIORS EARNING THEIR FIRSTS
Four members of the WSU women's basketball team have made the first career starts in 2023-24 for head coach Carrie Lohr. McKenna Ferguson (November 15 at Cedarville) and Annabel Ayrault (November 17 vs. Tiffin) have started as freshmen, while sophomore Gabi Lutchka started on December 9 at Michigan Tech. Junior Ally Shagena appeared in a starting role vs. Lawrence Tech on November 26.

In addition, Ferguson, Ayrault, J'Ahni Walker, Emily Homan, and ZaMaria Polk have all made their collegiate debuts with the Green and Gold this season.

REGIONAL RANKINGS
Wayne State sits eighth in the Midwest Region rankings, as released by D2CSC for the week of December 18. The regional rankings are released every Monday prior to the national poll being revealed on Tuesdays. The complete top 10 for the region includes Grand Valley State (57 points plus four first-place votes), Ashland (53 points plus one first-place vote), Ferris State (52 points plus one first-place vote), Kentucky Wesleyan (38), Ursuline (25), Drury (22), Lewis (18), Wayne State (17), Parkside (16), and McKendree (15).

GLIAC PRESEASON POLL
1. Grand Valley State (79 points, 7 first-place votes)
2. Ferris State (73 points, 3 first-place votes)
3. Michigan Tech (66 points)
4. Northern Michigan (52 points)
5. Wayne State (46 points)
6. Parkside (40 points)
7. Saginaw Valley State (37 points)
8. Davenport (22 points)
9. Purdue Northwest (19 points)
10. Lake Superior State (16 points)

KEEP UP WITH THE ACTION
Every women's basketball GLIAC contest this season (with the exception of the road contest at Purdue Northwest) will be televised on FloSports (flohoops.com) per the conference's agreement with the streaming service. All home non-conference games will also be available on FloSports for the 2023-24 campaign. Brady Beedon and Joe Abramson will share play-by-play responsibilities for home telecasts all season long, with veteran Tony Ortiz joining the team as sideline reporter for weekend contests.

In addition, the WSU Department of Athletics has partnered with The PreP for streaming home athletic events for the 2023-24 season. For road GLIAC contests, Wayne State men's basketball play-by-play voice Kevin Brechmacher will provide audio for free through WSUAthletics.com (Warrior All-Access).

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#12 Annabel Ayrault: G; 5' 9"; Freshman

#21 McKenna Ferguson: G; 5' 7"; Freshman

#4 Becca Fugate: G; 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior

#32 Emily Homan: G; 5' 11"; Freshman

#44 Gabi Lutchka: F; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#30 Kate McArthur: G; 5' 8"; Redshirt Senior

#14 Ally Shagena: F; 5' 11"; Junior

#23 Shea Tripp: F; 5' 10"; Junior

#34 ZaMaria Polk: F; 6' 3"; Senior

#11 J'Ahni Walker: C; 6' 2"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#12 Annabel Ayrault
: 5' 9"; Freshman
: G

#21 McKenna Ferguson
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: G

#4 Becca Fugate
: 5' 7"; Redshirt Senior
: G

#32 Emily Homan
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: G

#44 Gabi Lutchka
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: F

#30 Kate McArthur
: 5' 8"; Redshirt Senior
: G

#14 Ally Shagena
: 5' 11"; Junior
: F

#23 Shea Tripp
: 5' 10"; Junior
: F

#34 ZaMaria Polk
: 6' 3"; Senior
: F

#11 J'Ahni Walker
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: C