FSU Women’s Basketball At A Glance - The Ferris State University women’s basketball team will battle the Hillsdale Chargers this Thursday (Jan. 2) in a 6 p.m. (EST) Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) contest at FSU’s Jim Wink Arena in Big Rapids, Mich. FSU will then host the Wayne State Warriors in league play this Saturday (Jan. 4) with tipoff slated for 1 p.m. (EST). Ferris, which is presently 7-3 overall and 2-1 in league action, has won two consecutive games to date.

Ferris Wins Two Outings - Ferris won two games last weekend (Dec. 28-29) at the GLIAC/Great Lakes Valley Conference Challenge held at Southern Indiana’s Physical Activities Center in Evansville, Ind. FSU dealt the Southern Illinois-Edwardsville Cougars a 76-67 setback last Saturday (Dec. 28) before defeating the host Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles 66-56 last Sunday (Dec. 29). Junior forward/center Bridget Horwitz (Auburn, Ind./DeKalb) tallied a game-high 28 points and 10 rebounds while junior guard Lucy DeMartin (Mason) added 22 points along with a personal season-high 10 boards versus SIUE. DeMartin led Ferris with 18 points and Horwitz totaled 14 against USI. Sophomore forward Molly Potvin (Lansing/Catholic Central) added 11 points against SIUE and 10 versus Southern Indiana. Freshman guard Erin Miller (Niles) chipped in 13 points and eight rebounds in the win over the Screaming Eagles.

Last Season - Ferris State finished the 2001-02 campaign with a 14-12 overall mark, including a fourth-place 10-8 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division finish. The Bulldogs advanced to the GLIAC Tournament for the third consecutive season. Senior forward Patti Larson (Kalkaska) and Molly Potvin are Ferris’ 2002-03 team captains. Ten letterwinners and three starters return this season.

The Bulldog Tradition - The Ferris State women’s basketball program has compiled a 330-368 (.473) all-time mark in its 28 previous campaigns. The Bulldogs won the GLIAC North Division crown, advanced to the 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 ranked among the nation’s top 25 academic teams four consecutive seasons.

Ferris Picked Fifth In Preseason Poll - Ferris State was picked to finish fifth in the 2002-03 GLIAC North Division Preseason Coaches Poll. The Bulldogs tallied 16 total points. The league's 13 head coaches participated in the balloting, but were not allowed to vote for their teams. The first-place team on each ballot received six points while the second received five points, etc.

Home Sweet Home - Ferris is presently 28-8 (.778) overall at Jim Wink Arena. 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, which won its first 14 games in the facility, is currently 6-2 (.750) in non-league outings and 22-6 (.786) in GLIAC play at the new Jim Wink Arena.

Head Coach Tracey Fisk - Fifth-year FSU head coach Tracey Fisk has a current career coaching record of 77-43 (.642) at Ferris State. A 1996 graduate of Western Michigan, Fisk guided Ferris State to a 22-7 mark and the school's first NCAA-II Great Lakes Regional Tournament appearance during the 1999-00 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).

Horwitz Continues Solid Play - Bridget Horwitz, a 2001-02 All-GLIAC Second-Team pick, currently has an active 18-game double-figure scoring streak dating back to last season. She is averaging a team-high 9.9 rebounds per game and ranks second among Ferris' scoring leaders at 19.1 points per game. Horwitz’s 35 points at Lewis (12/18) were the most recorded by a FSU player since Jodi Raab totaled a school-record output of 46 points against Wayne State (2/6/93). The only other player in school history to score 35 points or more in a single-game was Tanya Johnson, who had 37 versus Wayne State (2/7/76).

DeMartin Closing In - Lucy DeMartin presently has scored 840 career points and needs nine more to move into a 13th-place tie with Jeanette Banach (849; 1988-92) on FSU's career scoring leaders list. DeMartin, who has scored 10 points or more in 15 consecutive games dating back to last season, presently has scored 20 points or more in six of her last nine outings and is averaging 21.6 points per game during that span. She ranks seventh (.346; 47-136) among Ferris’ career three-point field goal percentage leaders to date and is one three-point basket shy of tying Lori Young (48; 1992-94) for 12th place on Ferris' all-time chart. DeMartin, who currently ranks fourth (.798; 205-257) on the school’s career free throw percentage chart, presently has 190 career assists and needs two more to tie Marian Glanza (192; 1987-91) for 11th place among FSU’s career leaders. She has 99 career steals to date and is 26 short of matching Jill Thayer’s (125; 1994-98) 10th-place career total. DeMartin, who currently ranks as FSU’s leading scorer (21.1 ppg), has led Ferris in scoring in six of the last nine outings to date.

Bulldog Bites - Bridget Horwitz totaled 13 made field goals versus SIUE, which was three shy of matching the school record (16) set by Ola Earvin versus Florida Southern (12/31/93) ....... The Bulldogs’ top three season scoring leaders (Lucy DeMartin, Horwitz, & Erin Miller) have accounted for 526 of the squad's 748 total points (70%) this season. Only one other Bulldog player, Molly Potvin, has reached double-figure scoring this season ........... Sophomore forward Sarah Duesing (Sault Ste. Marie/Sault Area) notched her 50th career point versus SIUE .......... Sophomore guard Lindsey Kohn (Belding) has scored 76 career points to date and is 24 shy of attaining her 100th career point ........ Junior forward Stephanie Benear (Howell) notched her 150th career board at Southern Indiana and needs 28 points to garner her 200th career point. She dished out a career-best six assists versus SIUE ....... Molly Potvin scored her 150th career point versus the Cougars. She grabbed a personal career-high nine rebounds against USI.

Horwitz Within Reach - Bridget Horwitz currently has 67 career blocked shots and needs three more to tie Heather Rosneck (70; 1995-99) for second place on Ferris' career blocks chart. She has 413 career rebounds to date and is three shy of tying Sharon Lipinski (416; 1977-79) for 16th place among the school’s career leaders. The 6-2 Horwitz posted the school’s third-best single-season scoring average (15.0 ppg) by a Bulldog sophomore during the 2001-02 campaign. She also placed fifth among the program’s sophomores in single-season rebounds (8.8 rpg) while compiling a team-best eight double-double (scoring & rebounding) performances. Horwitz, who currently ranks eighth (.477; 318-666) on FSU’s career field goal percentage chart, recorded her 14th career double-double performance versus Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. Horwitz has presently led Ferris in rebounding in nine games this campaign.

Miller Keeps Improving - Erin Miller, who presently ranks as FSU’s third-leading scorer (12.4) this campaign, has posted six double-figure scoring games. The 5-7 Miller currently is shooting 54-percent (15-28) from three-point range and has started all 10 games this campaign. She has scored 10 points or more in three of her last four games to date.

Against The Opponents - Ferris State will host Hillsdale and Wayne State in league play this weekend at FSU’s Jim Wink Arena.

Hillsdale: Ferris holds a 29-15 series edge entering this Thursday’s 45th meeting. However, the Chargers posted a 90-71 league tournament win in the last meeting (2/28/02) at the DeltaPlex in Grand Rapids, Mich. HC, which is coached by first-year head coach Claudette Charney, is presently 8-1 overall and 1-0 in league play after last Sunday’s (Dec. 29) 92-81 non-league home win over Tiffin (Ohio). The Chargers, who compiled a 23-8 overall record and a first-place 11-6 GLIAC mark in 2001-02, have won five consecutive outings to date. Senior guard Stephanie Heid presently ranks as Hillsdale’s leading scorer (21.0 ppg). The two teams have split the last six meetings. Ferris head coach Tracey Fisk presently has a 3-3 career coaching mark versus HC, which was picked to finish first in the 2002-03 GLIAC South Division Preseason Coaches Poll.

Wayne State: The Bulldogs maintain a 25-23 series advantage and defeated WSU 87-75 in overtime in the last meeting (1/5/02) at Detroit, Mich. WSU is presently 4-5 overall and 2-0 in GLIAC action going into this Thursday’s (Jan. 2) league road contest at Grand Valley State as a result of dropping a 96-64 non-conference decision last Monday (Dec. 30) at Northern Kentucky. FSU head coach Tracey Fisk presently has a 5-0 career coaching record against the Warriors, who have lost two of their last three games to date. Wayne State, which is led in scoring by senior guard Keneisha Moss (18.4 ppg), was 16-11 overall in 2001-02 and placed fourth (9-8) in the GLIAC’s South Division. The Warriors, who are coached by third-year head coach Gloria Bradley, were picked to finish fifth in the 2002-03 GLIAC South Division Preseason Coaches Poll.

Looking Ahead - Ferris will battle the Ashland Eagles Saturday, Jan. 11, in a 1 p.m. (EST) league contest at AU’s Kates Gymnasium in Ashland, Ohio.

Ferris On The Internet - Ferris State University Athletics’ official web site can be found at www.ferris.edu/sports. The site features information on all of FSU’s varsity athletics programs.