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Wayne State University Athletics

Taylor Thompson vs FSU 2025
Romer Santacruz
Taylor Thompson notched her third straight double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
77
Winner Wayne State WSU 8-3,3-0 GLIAC
39
Saginaw Valley SV 3-8,1-2 GLIAC
Winner
Wayne State WSU
8-3,3-0 GLIAC
77
Final
39
Saginaw Valley SV
3-8,1-2 GLIAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Wayne State WSU 17 19 17 24 77
Saginaw Valley SV 9 9 13 8 39

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Henry Coyle, Sports Information Graduate Assistant

Women's Hoops Rings in New Year with 77-39 Win at Saginaw Valley State

UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. -- The Wayne State University women's basketball team (8-3 overall, 3-0 GLIAC) earned its first victory of 2026, defeating Saginaw Valley State University (3-8 overall, 1-2 GLIAC) 77-39 on Friday, in James E. O'Neill Arena.

The Green and Gold improves to 3-0 in league play.

HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST QUARTER
The Cardinals began the game's scoring by way of the free throw line, as Megan McCalla connected on a pair from the charity stripe.  Taylor Thompson (Grand Blanc, Mich.) tallied the first field goal of the game after an old-fashioned three-point play with just under 8:00 remaining in the opening frame.  McCalla once more added to the SVSU total, sinking a triple to go ahead 5-3.  A McKenna Ferguson (Grandville, Mich. / Byron Center) free throw at the 7:04 mark made it 5-4 in favor of Saginaw Valley.  Both teams went scoreless for the ensuing three minutes, before a pair of Ferguson free throws ignited a 13-4 WSU run to close the first quarter (17-9).

SECOND QUARTER
SVSU's Lauren Borsenik opened the second period with a lay-up to bring the Cardinals within six points (17-11), but a 9-0 spurt for Wayne State extended the margin to 15 with 6:29 remaining in the stanza.  The Green and Gold out-paced the hosts 10-7 to close the second frame with a 36-18 lead.  Freshman AJ Rickli (Mattawan, Mich. / Paw Paw) contributed six points during that stretch.

THIRD QUARTER
A Jaci Tubergen (Hudsonville, Mich. [Bowling Green]) triple, a Thompson bucket, and a Karrington Gordon (Lincoln Park, Mich. [Central Michigan]) free throw extended WSU's advantage to 24 (42-18) before Borensik found the bottom of the net.  Thompson netted a free throw to make it 43-20, but six straight points pulled the hosts within 17 points (43-26).  WSU finished the quarter on a 10-5 surge, holding a 53-31 lead entering the final 10 minutes.

FOURTH QUARTER
Wayne State out-scored SVSU 24-8 in the final quarter, which was highlighted by 13 consecutive points by Gabi Lutchka (Grass Lake, Mich.) during a 13-1 run to begin the frame.

TEAM STATISTICS
The Warriors shot nearly 53 percent from the floor (27-of-51), making over half of their attempts for the second time this season (52 percent vs. Ferris State - 12/6/25), compared to 21 percent for the Cardinals (12-of-57).  WSU was 6-of-13 from deep (46 percent), while SVSU made 2-of-24 attempts (8 percent) from beyond the arc.  The Green and Gold won the rebounding battle, collecting 44 to Saginaw Valley State's 30.  WSU tallied 17 assists, while the Cardinals had five helpers.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
Taylor Thompson led the Wayne State charge with 14 points and 10 rebounds for her third consecutive double-double, along with a +34 plus/minus rating.  AJ Rickli added a career-best 13 points and five rebounds, while going 5-of-5 from the floor, in just over 11 minutes of action.  Gabi Lutchka contributed 13 points as well, while Thompson and McKenna Ferguson each had four assists with Ferguson notching a game-high three steals.  Annabel Ayrault (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich. / Grosse Pointe North) posted eight points and five rebounds.

LEADING THE CARDINALS
Megan McCalla had a game-best 20 points and made both of Saginaw Valley's triples (2-of-5).  Lauren Borsenik scored eight points, while Lydia Meredith led the team with six rebounds and two assists.

UP NEXT
Wayne State remains on the road, as the squad will travel to Lake Superior State University on Sunday, January 4, for a meeting with the Lakers at 12:00 PM in Bud Cooper Gymnasium.

 
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