Women's Basketball 1/3/2024 2:25:00 PM Matthew Jurek, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Basketball Prepares to Resume GLIAC Action in 2024

The Warriors will host their first two league games of the season vs. Purdue Northwest and Parkside.

GAME STORYLINES
Wayne State will begin 2024 with a pair of home contests against Purdue Northwest and Parkside. Tip-off between the Warriors and the Pride will be at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 4, while WSU and UWP will battle at 1 p.m. on Saturday, January 6.

The games will be the first two GLIAC match-ups this season inside the Wayne State Fieldhouse. The Green and Gold concluded non-conference action with an 84-67 setback at Northwood on December 30. WSU finished 7-2 against teams from outside its league. Wayne State is 1-1 in the conference following an 81-66 loss at Northern Michigan on December 7 and a 61-42 triumph at Michigan Tech on December 9.

SERIES HISTORY
Wayne State is 11-1 all-time against Purdue Northwest, with all 12 meetings occurring since 2017 when the Pride joined the GLIAC. WSU's lone defeat in the series was an 81-64 road loss in Hammond, Ind. on February 6, 2021. The Warriors have won the last four match-ups and are 5-0 at home against PNW. Carrie Lohr became the Green and Gold's all-time wins leader with a 76-67 victory over the Pride on January 10, 2019.

WSU and Parkside have played to an even 8-8 mark in 16 all-time contests. UWP claimed both wins last season over the Warriors to move ahead 6-4 in league games between the two schools. Prior to 2022-23, the Green and Gold had won five of six against the Rangers between February 15, 2020, and March 2, 2022. That 70-65 triumph for the Warriors in March 2022 was during the GLIAC Tournament, which helped Wayne State qualify for its most recent NCAA Tournament.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Purdue Northwest enters Thursday's contest at an even 6-6 after a 69-54 loss at Ursuline on December 30. The Pride split its pair of conference games in December, falling 65-57 to Ferris State but earning a 51-45 victory over Lake Superior State. PNW averages 60.6 points per game, while allowing 64.2 PPG to its opponents.

Two members of the Pride do much of the damage on offense. Senior guard Dash Shaw averages 16.6 points per game, which places her third in the GLIAC. Shaw is also the team's leading free throw shooter with 55 made foul shots on 64 attempts (.859). Her 12 steals and 37 assists pace her team in both categories.

Senior forward Mercedes Simmons is the other member of Purdue Northwest averaging in double figures at 14.1 PPG. Simmons leads the Pride in many of the other statistical categories including field goals made (70), field goal percentage (.526), blocked shots (31), and rebounds (109). Her 31 blocks are 25 more than anyone else on her team, making the forward a defensive threat inside the paint.

Courtney Locke is in her fifth season as head coach of Purdue Northwest. She has guided PNW to a 32-82 (.281) overall record and a 19-58 (.247) conference ledger.

Parkside enters its Thursday battle at Saginaw Valley State with a 6-3 mark. The Rangers won both of their home GLIAC games in December, first topping Lake Superior State 90-49 before downing then #5-ranked Ferris State 79-70. UWP sits third in the conference at 75.1 points per game, with its defense holding opponents to 66.4 PPG. The Rangers also lead the GLIAC in assists at 17.9 APG.

Junior guard Sheridan Flauger (14.2 PPG) and senior guard Paty Gallasova (14.0 PPG) form a dynamic scoring duo for the Rangers. Each have made 46 field goals, while Flauger has knocked down 24 three-pointers to lead the squad. Gallasova has made 13 of her 28 triple tries (.464). Both guards can distribute the ball just as well as they score it. Flauger (41 assists) and Gallasova (40) are the only two members of UWP with at least 20 dimes. Freshman forward Lillie Petersen is the squad's leading rebounder with 54 boards.

Leading the Rangers is Jen Conley in her sixth season as head coach. UWP is 78-67 (.538) overall and 58-41 (.586) in GLIAC play under Conley.

LAST WEEKEND RECAP
Wayne State closed the 2023 calendar year with an 84-67 loss at former GLIAC member Northwood on December 30. The game was WSU's final non-conference affair of the campaign, which the Green and Gold finished with a 7-2 record. The two squads each held the lead over the first 3:03 of the opening stanza, before a triple from NU's Alli Keyser put the hosts ahead 7-6. Despite the Warriors rallying for a 13-3 run between the 7:43 and 2:49 marks to knot the score at 29-29, the Timberwolves never trailed again for the rest of the contest.

Three Wayne State players had notable performances, including McKenna Ferguson with a game-best and a career-high 19 points. Becca Fugate notched 18 points to finish the contest three shy of 1,000 for her career. Shea Tripp earned her second double-double of the campaign with 13 rebounds (a game high and career best) and 11 points. The trio of Warriors were responsible for 48 of the team's 67 points.

FUGATE APPROACHING MILESTONES
Redshirt senior Becca Fugate continued her march towards 1,000 career points in the most recent contest at Northwood. Entering the game at Riepma Arena with 979 career points, Fugate notched 18 to finish the contest with 997 for her five-season collegiate career. With three points at home against Purdue Northwest on Thursday, Fugate will become the 19th Warrior to reach the 1K milestone. The guard has scored in double figures 50 times, with seven games of at least 20 points.

Monique Johnson is the all-time scoring leader in WSU history with 1,439 points between 1988 and 1993. Fugate ranks 19th on the all-time leaderboard.

Fugate also played in her 114th career game at NU, 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 five contests.

NATIONAL ATTENTION
Through games on January 2, Wayne State ranks 32nd out of 291 programs in three-pointers per game (7.7), 37th in both free throw percentage (.762) and in three-point percentage (.351), 42nd in steals per game (11.3), 47th in assists per game (15.6), in field goal percentage (.436), and in scoring offense (73.5 points per game), and 58th in turnover margin (3.45).

Individually, Kate McArthur ranks 32nd nationally in steals per game (2.82), 35th in total steals (31), 61st in assists (46), and 63rd in assists per game (4.2). Shea Tripp is 26th in the country in steals per game (2.91) and 27th in total steals (32).

PACING THE GLIAC
Wayne State's strong 11-game start to the campaign has put the squad in the upper half of the GLIAC for several team and individual categories. Following games on January 2, WSU ranks fourth in a few statistics including points per game (73.5), three-point percentage (.351), and free throw percentage (.762). The team is fifth in field goal percentage (.436). In ball control categories, the Warriors lead the conference in steals per game (11.3), which is just ahead of Saginaw Valley State (10.9), Ferris State (10.8), Grand Valley State (10.2), and Parkside (9.2). The Green and Gold are fourth in assists per game (15.6) behind UWP, FSU, and GVSU.

Shea Tripp leads the league in both steals (32) and steals per game (2.91), while placing fourth in scoring (15.0 PPG) and fifth in rebounds per game (7.3). Kate McArthur is right behind her teammate in both steal categories (31 steals and 2.82 SPG), while ranking first in the conference with 46 helpers. Her 4.2 assists per game ranks fourth. Gabi Lutchka's .638 field goal percentage and .556 three-point percentage are enough for fourth and first, respectively. McKenna Ferguson is tied-for-fifth with an .833 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.

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 will handle the play-by-play duties for both home contests against Purdue Northwest (Thursday at 5:30 p.m.) and Parkside (Saturday at 1 p.m.). Beedon and Joe Abramson will share PBP 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

#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

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

Players Mentioned

#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

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