This Week: The Ferris State women’s basketball team will take part in the Texas A&M-Kingsville Holiday Inn Emerald Beach Turkey Day Shootout Friday and Saturday, Nov. 25-26, in Kingsville, Texas. FSU will square off against Angelo State (Texas) Friday (Nov. 25) and then face St. Mary’s (Texas) Saturday (Nov. 26). Both non-league games are set to tipoff at 5 p.m. (EST) in TAMUK’s Steinke Center.

About The Event: Six teams will be competing in TAMUK’s annual Turkey Day Shootout. The field also includes Missouri-Rolla and Incarnate Word (Texas) in addition to FSU, Angelo State, St. Mary’s and the host institution. Three games will be held each day with the Bulldogs playing the middle contest each afternoon.

FSU Wins Tourney: Ferris opened the season with a 2-0 mark by capturing the McCarthy & Sons Aquinas College Classic last Friday and Saturday (Nov. 18-19) in Grand Rapids, Mich. FSU defeated Indiana-South Bend 72-47 in Friday’s (Nov. 18) opener before defeating host Aquinas 90-83 in Saturday’s (Nov. 19) title contest.

All-Tourney Team Picks: FSU had three players named to the McCarthy & Sons Aquinas College Classic All-Tournament Team last weekend. Junior guard Kristin Reinhart (East Lansing) earned tournament Most Valuable Player Award recognition while junior guard Erin Miller (Niles) and sophomore forward/center Rachel Folcik (Powers/Carney-Nadeau) both attained all-tournament team kudos.

Last Season: Ferris State finished the 2004-05 season with an 11-17 overall record. FSU placed fourth in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division with a 9-9 conference ledger and advanced to the league's postseason tournament for the sixth consecutive year. The Bulldogs also recorded their ninth-straight season with 10 or more victories.

FSU Drops Exhibition: Nationally-ranked NCAA Division I power Notre Dame forced 31 turnovers in a 96-45 exhibition game victory over visiting Ferris State on Nov. 10 before a crowd of 5,421 in the Joyce Center at South Bend, Ind. The Fighting Irish, who are ranked 15th in the Associated Press Division I Preseason Poll, jumped out to a 41-24 halftime advantage and outscored the Bulldogs 55-21 in the final half. FSU scored the game's opening five points and remained within striking distance for most the of the opening half before Notre Dame went on a 29-6 run to begin the final period.

Head Coach Tracey Bloodworth-Fisk: Eighth-year FSU head coach Tracey Bloodworth-Fisk presently ranks as Ferris’ all-time winningest coach with a current 119-78 (.604) 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).

The Bulldog Tradition: The Ferris State women’s basketball program, which will open its 32nd season of varsity competition, has compiled a 372-403 (.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.

Looking Back At 2003-04: 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 two seasons ago.

The Bulldog Roster: Ferris’ 2005-06 roster includes one senior, three juniors, four sophomores and six freshmen. Five of the 14 players are guards while the remaining nine are frontcourt players. All 12 players on the roster hail from Michigan. Forward Kelly McLaughlin (Clare) is the only senior on the roster.

The Team Captains: FSU’s Kelly McLaughlin, Erin Miller and Kristin Reinhart have been named team captains for the 2005-06 campaign.

Jim Wink Arena: Ferris has recorded a 44-19 (.698) overall record to date in games at Jim Wink Arena, including a 36-17 (.679) 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 156-118 (.569) overall since 1995-96 and sports a 92-79 (.538) record in road/neutral site contests during that span. The Bulldogs are 52-41 (.559) overall in road games under head coach Tracey Bloodworth-Fisk, including a 37-26 (.587) record in GLIAC play.

Miller Back In The Mix: Ferris’ Erin Miller returns after missing all but the first two games of the 2004-05 campaign due to injury. Miller reached double-figure scoring in 28 of her 31 contests in 2003-04 and ranked as the Bulldogs' second-leading scorer (17.0 ppg). The 5-7 Miller was the recipient of the GLIAC’s 2002-03 Freshman of the Year Award after being the team’s third-highest scorer (12.5 ppg) in her initial season. Miller, who garnered both Verizon Academic All-District IV Third Team and GLIAC All-Academic Team recognition as a sophomore (2003-04), also attained GLIAC North Division Player of the Week accolades twice (Jan. 5 & Feb. 9) in 2003-04. She earned first-team WBCA All-Great Lakes Region and All-GLIAC North Division, second-team Daktronics All-Great Lakes Region honors along with being among 40 finalists for the NCAA Division II Kodak/WBCA All-America Team during the 2003-04 campaign.

Reinhart Also Returns: FSU’s Kristin Reinhart received second-team All-GLIAC North Division kudos for the Bulldogs last season despite missing the final eight games due to injury. She netted 308 points in 20 outings last campaign. Reinhart also dished out a team-high 96 assists and tallied 36 steals along with 25 made three-point field goals en route to being named co-recipient of Ferris State’s 2004-05 team Most Valuable Player Award.

A Coaching Family: FSU’s Tracey Bloodworth-Fisk is far from the only coach in her family. She previously spent three seasons as an assistant coach under her father, Rick Bloodworth, at Lake Michigan College in Benton Harbor, Mich. In addition, her younger sister, Andrea Bloodworth, currently is serving as an assistant women’s basketball coach at NCAA Division I Valparaiso (Ind.) after spending three years as the top assistant coach at GLIAC-member Gannon.

GLIAC Games On The Air: FSU’s 2005-06 league games will be carried live by local radio station WBRN (News Talk 1460 AM). Selected contests can also be accessed via the internet by clicking on the Bulldog Athletics Webcasts icon at www.ferris.edu/sports. Jason DaDay will handle play-by-play duties for the GLIAC home games while Ferris State Assistant Athletics Communications Director Rob Bentley will be in front of the microphone for all league road contests.

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 including rosters, statistics, yearbooks and more.

Live Stats: “Live Stats” of all 2005-06 Ferris State home basketball games will be provided in progress via the internet. Visit www.ferris.edu/sports and click on the “Live Stats” icon to access the “Live Stats” feature.

At The Top: Ferris head coach Tracey Bloodworth-Fisk became the school’s all-time victory leader with two wins last weekend. Bloodworth-Fisk, who also ranks as FSU’s all-time winningest coach, surpassed Pat Dolan’s (1977-89) previous school-record total of 118 wins at FSU. Both of FSU’s two all-time NCAA Division II National Tournament appearances have came under Bloodworth-Fisk. She was honored as the GLIAC’s 2003-04 Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year after guiding the Bulldogs to their fifth consecutive conference tournament berth and the program’s second-ever 20-win campaign.

GLIAC Preseason Poll: Ferris State was picked to finish fourth in the 2005-06 GLIAC Women's Basketball Coaches Preseason North Division Poll, which was released by the league office. The Bulldogs totaled 23 points in the balloting, which was conducted by the conference's head coaches. A year ago, Ferris State took second place in the conference's preseason coaches poll with 32 points and three first-place votes. Grand Valley State was selected as the North Division favorite as the Lakers recorded 36 points along with six first-place votes. Gannon and Hillsdale tied for the top spot in the South Division with 21 points and three first-place votes apiece. The league's 13 head coaches voted for the division in which they play, but were not allowed to vote for their own team.

Players To Watch: FSU’s Kristin Reinhart and Erin Miller were chosen among the top 10 West Michigan collegiate players to watch this year by the Grand Rapids Press in the Nov. 15 edition. The women’s rankings honored Reinhart as the second overall selection while Miller came in seventh. Grand Valley State tallied four of the top 10 picks, including the number one honoree in 2004-05 GLIAC Player of the Year Niki Reams. Ferris placed second with two nominations followed by Calvin, Aquinas, Hope and Davenport with one apiece.

The Staff: Head coach Tracey Bloodworth-Fisk returns her top assistant coach for the fourth year in Justin Rees. Rees, who previously served for three seasons (1999-02) as an assistant coach at NCAA-II Teikyo Post (Conn.), played collegiate basketball at Barry (Fla.) from 1993-97.

Academic Success: The Bulldogs have ranked among the nation’s top academic programs six consecutive seasons, according to the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II Academic Top 25 Team Honor Roll list. FSU placed 14th overall in 2004-05 with a 3.432 grade point average. Ferris had the nation’s highest gpa in 1999-00 and placed second in 2002-03.

Bulldog Bites: Ferris returns two starters and eight letterwinners from last season ............ The biggest graduation loss was leading scorer and first-team All-GLIAC center Bridget Horwitz (15.4 ppg) ....... FSU also lost two-time GLIAC North Division II Defensive Team selection Sarah Duesing to graduation ......... Fifteen of the school’s 27 regular-season games are away from home ....... FSU will also travel to Florida for two games this season. The Bulldogs will take part in the Barry (Fla.) Buccaneer Holiday Classic after Christmas (Dec. 29-30) in Miami Shores, Fla. ........ The Bulldogs improved to 14-18 all-time in season-opening contests with last Friday’s win over Indiana-South Bend. FSU has presently won five of its last eight season openers. The Bulldogs have won eight of their past 11 openers, including a 5-3 mark (.625) under head coach Tracey Bloodworth-Fisk.

Home Opener: Ferris’ home opener at Jim Wink Arena is set for Thursday, Dec. 1, beginning at 6 p.m. (EST) versus Northwood. The contest also represents Ferris’ first league game of the season.

A Look At The Opponents:

Angelo State: Ferris and Angelo State have never squared off before heading into Friday’s meeting. ASU made its fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament and won the Lone Star Conference (LSC) Tournament championship during the 2004-05 campaign. The Rambelles are currently 2-0 overall this season following Tuesday’s (Nov. 22) 59-49 non-league home win over Incarnate Word (Texas) in San Angelo, Texas. They also posted a 68-66 season-opening triumph (Nov. 15) at St. Edwards (Texas). Sally Walling Brooks is in her sixth season as head coach at Angelo State, which was picked second in the 2005-06 LSC South Division Preseason Poll after winning a school-record 28 games (28-4) and posting a 12-2 league mark last year. Three players are presently averaging double-figure scoring, led by junior guard Ashley King’s team-high 13.5 points per game.

St. Mary’s: The Bulldogs and St. Mary’s will face each other for the first time Saturday. The Rattlers, who are scheduled to face host Texas A&M-Kingsville on Friday, currently hold an 0-3 overall record to date this season. St. Mary’s suffered an 87-73 setback Tuesday (Nov. 22) versus Lubbock Christian (Texas) at home in San Antonio, Texas. The Rattlers, who were picked fifth of seven teams in the 2005-06 Heartland Conference (HLC) Preseason Poll, are coached by fifth-year head coach Paige Clawson. St. Mary’s posted a 12-15 overall record last campaign and placed tied for fifth place in the HLC with a 5-7 league finish.