2001-02 News

Bulldog Open New Season in Georgia

The Season Ahead - Ferris State was 16-11 overall and 11-7 in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) action during the 2000-01 campaign. Eight letterwinners return from last year's squad which reached the GLIAC Tournament for the second-consecutive season. Seniors Debbie Killips and Patti Larson have been elected team captains. The biggest graduation loss was 2000-01 GLIAC Player of the Year Tianna Kirkland. Kirkland led the 2000-01 Bulldogs in scoring (15.2 ppg) and rebounding (9.7 ppg).

Killips Closing In - Senior point guard Debbie Killips enters her final season 23 steals away from becoming FSU's career leader. Former Bulldog player Valerie Scott (1994-98) is the FSU career steals leader with 253 thefts. Killips ranks second with 230 career steals.

A 2000-01 GLIAC North Division All-Defensive Team selection, Killips set a single-game school record with 12 steals against Ashland last season (12/2/00).

Killips has 300 career assists and needs 11 more to tie Vicki Williams (1979-83) for fifth place on the school's career assists chart. During the 2000-01 campaign, Killips dished out the second-most single-season assists (150) in school history.

A second-team 2000-01 All-GLIAC North Division honoree, Killips was named to the 2001 Verizon Academic All-District IV Team and garnered Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan Athletic/Academic recognition.

FSU Fourth In Preseason Poll - Ferris State tallied 21 points to finish fourth in the GLIAC Preseason Women's Basketball North Division Coaches Poll. Michigan Tech University was selected the GLIAC's North Division favorite with five first-place votes and 34 total points. Northern Michigan University finished second with 31 points and two first-place votes while Lake Superior State University placed third (27 points). In the South Division, Hillsdale College was selected as the preseason favorite as the Chargers secured four first-place votes and 23 total points. The voting was conducted by the league's 12 head coaches.

Larson Out With Injury - Senior Patti Larson suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury during preseason practices and has been lost for the year. A three-year letterwinner, Larson scored 37 points and grabbed 60 rebounds during the 2000-01 campaign. A 2000-01 GLIAC All-Academic pick, Larson could seek a medical redshirt season and return for the 2002-03 campaign. She will continue to serve in her role as team captain. Larson averaged 1.4 points per game and 2.2 rebounds per contest as a junior.

Head Coach Tracey Fisk - Head coach Tracey Fisk enters her fourth season at the helm with a career coaching record of 56-28 (.667). A 1996 graduate of Western Michigan, Fisk guided Ferris State to a 22-7 mark and the school's first NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional appearance during the 2000-01 campaign. Prior to FSU, Fisk spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Lake Michigan College (1994-97) and one season at the University of Indianapolis (1997-98).

Bulldog Bites - FSU was 9-6 versus in-state opponents during the 2000-01 season ....... Senior Debbie Killips compiled 93 steals last year to post the second-best single-season assists total in school history .......... Junior Jennifer Brogger is 11th on FSU's all-time career made three-point field goal chart (50) ............. Sophomore Bridget Horwitz recorded FSU's 10th-best single-season blocks total (17) last year ........ Killips was FSU's second-leading scorer last year (11.3 ppg) while sophomore Lucy DeMartin was third (9.7 ppg) ......... DeMartin notched the sixth-best Ferris State single-season free throw percentage last year (.815) .............. Killips started all 27 games last season while DeMartin started 26 .......... The FSU roster includes six sophomores ............. Key newcomers include junior college transfer Ann Platz and freshman Sarah Duesing .................. Killips set a school single-season three-point field goal percentage (.467) record last year ................. Entering the year, Killips ranks second in career three-point field goal percentage (.380) while Brogger is seventh (.350).

29th Season Opener - Ferris State will open its 29th season of women's basketball against Presbyterian College (S.C.) at the Chatham Orthopaedics Tipoff Classic in Savannah, Ga. The Bulldogs have an all-time mark of 11-16 in season-opening games. Under head coach Tracey Fisk, the Bulldogs are 2-1 on opening day. Last season, FSU defeated Missouri-St. Louis 87-68 at Jim Wink Arena in Big Rapids, Mich. In FSU's last opening day road contest, the Bulldogs fell to Findlay 81-75 (1999-00). FSU has won four of its past six opening day games. Ferris State has never faced Presbyterian. The Blue Hose posted the school's fourth-straight 20-win campaign last year (22-8) and tied for second place in the South Atlantic Conference. PC has reached the NCAA Division II Tournament five times in the last eight seasons.

Tournament Notes - The Bulldogs have never played Armstrong Atlantic State or Fayetteville State. AASU finished 10-16 last season and returns 2001-02 Peach Belt Conference Preseason Player of the Year Zandrique Cason. Former FSU volunteer assistant coach Andy Bloodworth (1998-99) is in her first season as an assistant coach at AASU. Bloodworth is the sister of Bulldog head coach Tracey Fisk.

Ticket Prices - Individual game tickets to all FSU home basketball games at Jim Wink Arena can be obtained at the door or by calling the Bulldog ticket office at (231) 591-2888. Adult tickets are $5 and student tickets are $3. A family pass can be purchased for $10. Ferris State faculty/staff ticket prices are $4. Special group pricing is available for groups of 20 or more.

Looking Ahead - Ferris State will open Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action Nov. 29 at Findlay at 7:30 p.m. The Bulldogs open the 2001-02 home campaign against Gannon at Jim Wink Arena on Dec. 6 at 6 p.m.