Women's Basketball 1/10/2024 1:51:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Hoops to Play First Two Road Games of 2024 at Davenport and Grand Valley State

The Warriors are 2-2 after four GLIAC contests this season.

GAME STORYLINES
After splitting a pair of home contests against Purdue Northwest and Parkside to begin the new year, Wayne State will hit the road for the first time in 2024 at Davenport and Grand Valley State. The Warriors and Panthers will meet for a 5:30 p.m. tip on Thursday, January 11, from the DU Student Center in Grand Rapids. Then, WSU and the top-ranked Lakers will battle at 1 p.m. inside the GVSU Fieldhouse Arena on Saturday, January 13, from Allendale.

SERIES HISTORY
Each of the 12 games in the all-time season series between Wayne State and Davenport have been league contests, with WSU holding an 8-4 edge. The two squads have played relatively even after the Warriors notched four consecutive wins over DU between January 27, 2018, and January 9, 2020. The Green and Gold have won four contests vs. the Panthers since January 15, 2021. Davenport has earned three triumphs in that same time, including a 75-65 overtime victory on January 14, 2023.

Grand Valley State leads the all-time season series 60-26 in the 86 meetings between the two schools. The Warriors will be looking to snap an 18-game losing skid to the Lakers, which dates back to the 2015-16 campaign. WSU's last victory in the series was an 89-63 win over #17-GVSU on January 2, 2015, inside the Matthaei. Wayne State's last road triumph was a 78-76 decision on February 1, 2014. WSU is 9-30 all-time at Grand Valley State.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Davenport enters the contest with a 2-11 overall record. The Panthers will be looking for their first league win of the campaign after losses to Northern Michigan, Michigan Tech, and GVSU to start conference play. DU is a young squad with a starting five that includes two sophomores and a freshman.

Junior center Lillee Gustafson leads the charge for Davenport, and carries somewhat of a do-it-all effort for her squad. Gustafson is the only DU player averaging in double figures at 12.5 PPG. She also paces her team in field goals made (66), field goal percentage (.496), free throws made (30), rebounds (104), steals (24), and blocked shots (6). The center's 66 made field goals are 28 more than anyone else on DU, while her 104 boards are 50 more than the next highest Panther. Gustafson sits third in the GLIAC with 8.0 rebounds per game. Other Davenport notables include sophomore guard Alexa Kolnitys (a team-best 27 assists) and freshman guard Isabel Lindo (a team-leading 18 triples).

Shonda Sanders is in her second season as Davenport's head coach. She is 9-32 (.216) overall with the Panthers. Sanders' staff includes assistant coach Sophia Karasinski, who played for Wayne State as a graduate student during the 2022-23 season.

Grand Valley State, the nation's top Division II squad, is 12-1 entering Thursday's game against Saginaw Valley State. The Lakers' lone loss this season was at Division I Ohio State. GVSU has reeled off five victories since its defeat on December 15, including conference wins vs. MTU and NMU. Grand Valley State will be concluding a season-long seven game home stand with its contest against the Warriors on Saturday.

The Lakers are one the best teams in the nation for a reason, especially on defense. GVSU allows just 48.0 points per game as of January 10, which is second in the country behind Saint Rose (45.0). Rebounding is also a key towards the Lakers' success, as their +14.2-rebounding margin is the best in Division II. Grand Valley State surrenders just 28.8 rebounds per game to its opponents.

GVSU spreads around its scoring efficiently. Despite just one player averaging in double figures (junior Ellie Droste at 12.8 PPG), six Lakers average eight points or more. Droste leads her team in field goals made (64), while junior guard Abrie Cabana is the squad leader with 26 three-pointers made. Redshirt junior forward Rylie Bisballe has nabbed 89 rebounds and 13 blocks to lead Grand Valley State, with redshirt sophomore guard Nicole Kamin's 30 assists and 20 steals also a team best.

The head coach of the Lakers in his ninth season is Mike Williams. His Grand Valley State teams have amassed a 221-45 (.831) overall record and a 136-25 (.845) mark in the GLIAC.

LAST WEEKEND RECAP
Wayne State defeated Purdue Northwest 76-71 inside the Wayne State Fieldhouse on January 4, before suffering a 95-59 setback vs. Parkside on January 6. The games were the first two home GLIAC contests of 2023-24 and moved WSU to an even 2-2 in league play. In the victory against PNW, Becca Fugate became the 19th Warrior in program history to notch 1,000 career points. She achieved the feat on her three-pointer 55 seconds into the second quarter. Fugate was the first Wayne State women's basketball student-athlete to reach the 1K mark since Nastassja Chambers on February 16, 2019.

Despite Purdue Northwest closing the lead to three (37-34) early in the second half, Wayne State led for the remaining 20 minutes and notched the five-point triumph. Kate McArthur knocked down six important free throws over the final 2:17 to help WSU to the finish line. Other key performances included Gabi Lutchka with a career-best 21 points, and Mackenzie Miller knocking down all five field goals in scoring 10 points. The contest was Miller's WSU and season debut after spending last season at Division III Lakeland University.

UWP scored 33 first quarter points last Saturday and led the entire way in coasting to a 36-point win. McKenna Ferguson tallied 15 points to lead WSU, while Shea Tripp had 11 and posted a team-best six boards, six assists, and four steals.

FUGATE'S NEXT MILESTONE
After eclipsing the 1,000-point milestone in the win over Purdue Northwest, redshirt senior guard Becca Fugate has one more upcoming milestone on the horizon during the 2023-24 season. Fugate played in her 115th and 116th career games vs. PNW and Parkside, which ranks third on the all-time games played list. The fifth-year player will pass current 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 three contests.

WIDE MARGINS
Last Thursday's contest against Purdue Northwest was the closest final score in any of Wayne State's 13 games this season. The 76-71 final was also the first (and so far, only) contest during the 2023-24 campaign that has been decided by single digits. The previous closest final margin was 10 in WSU's 78-68 win at Cedarville on November 15.

The Warriors have an average margin of victory of 17.6 in its nine triumphs this season over Malone, CU, Tiffin, Lawrence Tech, Edinboro, D'Youville, Michigan Tech, Findlay, and PNW.

NATIONAL ATTENTION
Through games on January 9, Wayne State ranks 36th out of 291 programs in free throw percentage (.758), 37th in steals per game (11.5), 38th in three-pointers per game (7.5), 43rd in assists per game (15.7), 45th in three-point percentage (.343), and 57th in scoring offense (72.5 PPG).

Individually, Shea Tripp is 14th nationally in steals (40) and 20th in steals per game (3.08). Kate McArthur ranks 55th in steals with 33.

PACING THE GLIAC
Within the GLIAC and following games on January 9 (13 contests), Wayne State ranks fourth in points per game (72.5) and in free throw percentage (.7576). The Warriors are fifth in both field goal percentage (.426) and three-point percentage (.343). In ball control categories, the Green and Gold pace the conference in steals per game (11.5), which is just ahead of Ferris State's 11.1. Wayne State sits fourth in assists per game (15.7), behind FSU, Parkside, and Grand Valley State.

Shea Tripp is the league leader in steals (40) and steals per game (3.08), while placing fifth in points per game (13.5) and rebounds per game (7.0). Kate McArthur is tied-for-third with Mackenzie Holzwart (Northern Michigan) in assists per game (4.0). The guard is second behind her teammate Tripp for the conference lead in steals (33) and steals per game (2.54). Gabi Lutchka is within the top five for a pair of shooting categories. The sophomore is second in three-point percentage (.481) behind Michigan Tech's Alex Rondorf (.522), and fifth with a .563 field goal 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 careers.

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 (except 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).

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Players Mentioned

#34 Sophia Karasinski: G; 5' 9"; Graduate Student

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

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

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

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

#42 Mackenzie Miller: F; 5' 11"; Sophomore

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

Players Mentioned

#34 Sophia Karasinski
: 5' 9"; Graduate Student
: G

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

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

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

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

#42 Mackenzie Miller
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: F

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