FSU At A Glance: The Ferris State University women’s basketball team concludes its six-game homestand by hosting Northwood Saturday, Feb. 19, in a 1 p.m. (EST) Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) contest at FSU’s Jim Wink Arena in Big Rapids, Mich. The contest is Ferris’ regular-season home finale.

FSU Fourth In Division: FSU is currently 10-14 overall and 8-7 in league action, which ranks fourth in the GLIAC North Division standings to date. Grand Valley State (15-1) presently leads the division with Lake Superior State (13-1) second and Michigan Tech (12-2) listed third. Ferris has won seven of its last 13 outings to date this season, including six of its last 10 contests.

Media Coverage: FSU’s 2004-05 league games will be carried live by local radio station WBRN-1460 AM. Selected contests can also be accessed live via the internet by clicking on the Bulldog Athletics Webcasts icon at www.ferris.edu/sports. Live internet statistics will also be available for all remaining FSU home games at the site.

Ticket Information: Individual game tickets to FSU regular-season home basketball games can be obtained at the door or by calling the Bulldog Athletics Ticket Office at (231) 591-2888. Adult tickets are $7 and student tickets are $5. A family pass can be purchased for $15. Ferris State faculty/staff ticket prices are $5. FSU students are admitted free of charge by showing their student identification card.

FSU Ends Slide With Win: Ferris State snapped a four-game losing streak with a 70-53 conference victory over Saginaw Valley State last Saturday (Feb. 12) in Wink Arena. The Bulldogs scored the game's first 20 points and held a 34-18 lead at halftime. Ferris then shot 63.6% (14-22) from the floor in the final half while clinching its sixth consecutive GLIAC Tournament berth with the victory. Four Bulldog players reached double-figure scoring as senior guard/forward Lucie Cenkova (Prague, Czech Republic) compiled 17 points, freshman guard/forward Sam Johns (Allendale) had a personal career-high 16 points and senior center Bridget Horwitz (Auburn, Ind./DeKalb) totaled 15 points. Freshman forward/center Rachel Folcik (Powers/Carney-Nadeau) recorded her second career double-double effort with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Fifth-Ranked Lakers Prevail: Nationally-ranked Lake Superior State jumped out to an early 10-0 lead and went on to defeat Ferris State 78-64 in league action last Thursday (Feb. 10) at Wink Arena. The Bulldogs had four players reach double-figure scoring, including Rachel Folcik's team-best 12 points. Bridget Horwitz, sophomore forward Audrey Thwing (Davison) and Sam Johns all scored 10 points apiece. The Lakers, who were ranked fifth in last week’s (Feb. 8) Division II national poll, were paced by Becky Marquardt-King's game-high 19 points.

A Look At The Bulldogs: FSU returns three starters and eight letterwinners from last season. The Bulldogs compiled a 21-10 overall record in 2003-04 and reached the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Tournament for only the second time in school history. FSU placed second (14-4) in the GLIAC North Division and advanced to the GLIAC Tournament Championship game during the 2003-04 campaign. The Bulldogs also made their fifth consecutive conference tournament berth and recorded the program’s second-ever 20-win campaign last season. Ferris has posted seven-straight winning seasons to date.

Head Coach Tracey Fisk: Seventh-year FSU head coach Tracey Fisk presently ranks as Ferris’ all-time winningest coach with a current 116-75 (.607) career record at Ferris State. A 1996 graduate of Western Michigan, Fisk guided FSU to a 22-7 mark and the school's first NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional Tournament appearance during the 1999-00 campaign. Prior to Ferris, Fisk spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Lake Michigan College (1994-97) and one season at the University of Indianapolis (1997-98). She needs two victories to match Pat Dolan’s (1977-89) school-record total of 118 wins at Ferris State.

The Bulldog Tradition: The Ferris State women’s basketball program, which is midst its 31st season of varsity competition, has compiled a 369-400 (.480) all-time mark. The Bulldogs won their only GLIAC crown, advanced to their first NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional Tournament and recorded the nation’s highest grade point average in 1999-2000. FSU, which also claimed GLIAC Tournament runner-up honors in 1999-00, has posted 10 or more victories nine consecutive seasons to date.

Jim Wink Arena: Ferris has recorded a 43-19 (.694) overall record to date in games at Jim Wink Arena, including a 35-17 (.673) mark in league play. The 2,400-seat facility replaced the Old Jim Wink Arena, which was converted into the current Student Recreation Center after the 1997-98 campaign. FSU won its first 14 games in the facility.

On The Road: Ferris State is 153-115 (.571) overall since 1995-96 and sports a 90-76 (.542) record in road/neutral site contests during that span. The Bulldogs are 51-38 (.573) overall in road games under head coach Tracey Fisk, including a 37-24 (.607) record in GLIAC play.

The Bulldog Roster: Ferris’ 2004-05 roster includes three seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and five freshmen. Five of the 13 players are guards while the remaining eight are frontcourt players. Eleven players hail from Michigan with one each from Indiana and the Czech Republic.

Between The Lines: FSU head coach Tracey Fisk will make periodic appearances throughout the season on “Between The Lines,” a weekly half-hour television show devoted to Ferris State Athletics. The program, which is hosted by Shannon Vesper and produced by FSU’s media productions department, airs each Tuesday and Wednesday at 7 p.m. (ET) and 8 p.m. (ET), respectively, on FSU’s Cable Channel 7.

FSU Picked Second: Ferris was picked to finish second in the 2004-05 GLIAC North Division Preseason Coaches Poll. The Bulldogs totaled 32 points along with three first-place votes in the balloting conducted by the conference's head coaches. Lake Superior State was selected as the North Division favorite as the Lakers recorded 33 points and four first-place votes. Ashland took the top spot in the South Division with 24 points. Each of the league’s 13 head coaches ranked the teams in their respective divisions, but were not allowed to vote for their own team.

FSU On The Web: Ferris State University Athletics’ official web site can be found at www.ferris.edu/sports. The Bulldogs’ 2004-05 yearbook is also available online.

Up Next: FSU will visit Northern Michigan Thursday, Feb. 24, for a 5:30 p.m. (EST) league tilt in Marquette and then conclude the regular-season with a GLIAC game against Michigan Tech Saturday, Feb. 26, at 1 p.m. (EST) in Houghton, Mich.

Bulldog Bites: Bridget Horwitz currently ranks fourth on the school’s all-time scoring leaders list. Horwitz, who presently has 1,342 points, needs one rebound to tie Monta Ware's (1979-83) fifth-place career rebounding total of 684 boards at FSU. She needs 17 rebounds to notch her 700th career board. ...... Junior guard/forward Kelly McLaughlin (Clare) is presently nine points shy of registering her 200th career point ........... Lucie Cenkova tallied a personal career-high 10 rebounds versus Grand Valley State (Feb. 7) while notching her first career double-double (points & rebounds). She has scored 10 points or more in four of her last five games to date ............. Sam Johns scored her 100th career point versus LSSU. She has tallied 10 points or more in four of her last five outings this campaign, including a personal career-high 16 points against Saginaw Valley State ............. Bridget Horwitz has 551 career field goals to date and ranks fourth all-time at Ferris State ............ Senior forward Sarah Duesing’s (Sault Ste. Marie/Sault Area) current .825 (66-80) free throw percentage this season ranks eighth on the school’s single-season leaders list.

Ferris Clinches Berth: Ferris clinched its sixth consecutive and seventh overall GLIAC Tournament berth with last Saturday’s win. FSU has posted a 5-6 (.455) record in six previous tournament bids, including runner-up finishes in 1999-00 and 2003-04. The top three teams from each division plus the next two best overall teams advance to the GLIAC Tournament. The quarterfinals will be held on campus sites Tuesday, March 1, with the highest remaining seed selected to host the semifinals/finals Friday and Saturday, March 4-5.

Senior Day Game: Ferris will honor seniors Lucie Cenkova, Sarah Duesing and Bridget Horwitz between Saturday’s women’s and men’s games as part of its annual Senior Day activities. Cenkova, whose current 35.6% (42-118) shooting accuracy from three-point range ranks eighth on FSU’s career list, has compiled 286 points and 83 rebounds in 46 career outings to date. A 2003-04 GLIAC North Division All-Defensive Team pick, Duesing has presently totaled 525 points and 319 boards in 104 outings at FSU. Horwitz, a two-time (2001-03) GLIAC North Division Second-Teamer, ranks among the school’s top 10 all-time leaders in points (1,342), rebounds (683), field goals (551), field goal percentage (.491), made free throws (238) and blocked shots (119).

More Bulldog Bites: FSU has recorded 10 or more steals 11 times in its last 15 outings this season after having done so only once in its initial nine games this campaign .............. Seventeen of Ferris’ 24 games this campaign have been decided by 10 points or more ....... LSSU defeated FSU for the 10th consecutive time last Thursday ........ Ferris’ four made free throws against Lake Superior State were its fewest since sinking only two-of-six attempts at Grand Valley State during the 2002-03 season (1/18/03) ...... The Bulldogs defeated Saginaw Valley State for the 13th consecutive time. FSU head coach Tracey Fisk presently holds a 13-1 career coaching mark versus SVSU.

Key FSU Notes: The Bulldogs registered their ninth consecutive 10-win campaign with the win over SVSU ....... The Bulldogs are averaging 12.6 steals per game in their 10 victories this season compared to only 7.1 steals a contest in 14 defeats ....... Ferris ranks first among the GLIAC’s conference-only leaders in assists (17.8 apg) this campaign ......... FSU has registered 20 or more assists eight times in its last 10 outings to date this season.

A Look At The Opponent:

Northwood: The Bulldogs maintain a 36-12 advantage heading into this Saturday’s 49th series meeting. FSU has won 18 consecutive series’ games and beat NU 89-64 in the last meeting (1/26/05) at Midland, Mich. NU is presently 7-17 overall and 3-12 in the GLIAC following Wednesday’s (Feb. 16) 80-64 league road loss at Grand Valley State. FSU head coach Tracey Fisk presently has a 13-0 career coaching record against the Timberwolves, who have lost their last eight games this campaign to date. Northwood, which is led in scoring by junior guard Maureen Elliott (12.0 ppg), was 5-21 overall in 2003-04 and placed seventh (0-18) in the GLIAC’s North Division. The Timberwolves, who are guided by first-year head coach Jeff Curtis, were picked to finish seventh in the 2004-05 GLIAC North Division Preseason Coaches Poll. Ferris State is 19-4 (home), 17-7 (road) and 0-1 (neutral) all-time to date versus Northwood. Former Bulldog player Jennifer Brogger (1999-02), who scored 626 points during her FSU career, presently is midst her first season as a NU assistant coach after concluding her collegiate career at Saginaw Valley State.