Ferris State Men's team beats Grand Valley to win GLIAC Tournament title; earns #5 seed in NCAA DII National Tournament
The Ferris State University men's basketball squad captured the program's sixth all-time Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament Championship on Sunday (March 10), beating achrival Grand Valley State 87-76 in the league tournament title game at the Berry Events Center in Marquette.
FSU stormed back from an 11-point halftime deficit, scoring 57 points in the second to notch its 25th win of the season and move on to the NCAA Tournament.
Junior guard Ethan Erickson paced the Bulldogs with a team-high 20 points while senior big man Vejas Grazulis totaled 16 points back in his hometown in another stellar GLIAC Tournament performance. FSU also got 15 points from senior Amari Lee and all 10 Bulldog players who saw action scored in the game.
Ferris State's win earned them an automatic bid for the NCAA DII National Tournament, which saw them rise from the seventh seed in the final regular season rankings to the fifth seed in the 11:00 P.M. selection show last night. The Bulldogs matchup against number four-seeded Northern Michigan in Midwest Regional, which will take place from March 16-19 at host and the region's number one-seed University of Indianapolis.
#1 UIndy vs. #8 William Jewell - Mar. 16 @ 5:00 P.M. - Nicoson Hall
#2 Kentucky Wesleyan vs. #7 Upper Iowa - Mar. 16 @ 2:30 P.M. - Nicoson Hall
#3 Walsh vs. #6 Lake Superior State - Mar. 16 @ 12:00 P.M. - Nicoson Hall
#4 Northern Michigan vs. #5 Ferris State - Mar. 16 @ 7:30 P.M. - Nicoson Hall
Stay tuned to FerrisStateBulldogs.com for additional postseason information.
Nation's 10th-ranked Bulldogs fall in GLIAC Tourney semifinals to Northern Michigan; earn #3 seed in NCAA DII National Tournament
The nation's 10th-ranked Ferris State University women's basketball team dropped a 63-56 decision to Northern Michigan in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament Semifinals on Saturday (March 9) afternoon inside the Grand Valley State Fieldhouse Arena in Allendale.
The second-seeded Bulldogs took a 14-10 first-quarter lead, but were outscored 15-9 by NMU in the second frame as the Wildcats led by two at the halftime break. NMU extended the lead to five at the end of three periods and the Bulldogs could not pull out the win. The Bulldogs were held to 35.9% shooting overall and finished only six-of-26 (23.1%) from three-point range in addition to four-of-nine (44.4%) at the free throw line in the setback. FSU was also outrebounded by a 42-33 count in the game.
Senior forward Chloe Idoni led the Bulldogs with 20 points in the game while junior guard Kenzie Bowers added 11 points and junior guard Kadyn Blanchard scored 10 points. Senior guard Mallory McCartney was held scoreless in the game despite playing all 40 minutes of the contest.
The Bulldogs' strong regular season did earn them prominence in both the national rankings and the regional rankings, entering the tournament as the potential third seed. Despite the loss in the semifinal round, the Bulldogs were given the number three seed and will face number six seed and GLVC champion, Lewis University, in the opening round. The NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Tournament will take place March 15-18 at top-seed and host Grand Valley State University.
#1 Grand Valley State vs. #8 Trevecca Nazarene - Mar. 14 @ 5:00 P.M. - GVSU Fieldhouse
#2 Ashland vs. #7 Drury - Mar. 14 @ 2:30 P.M. - GVSU Fieldhouse
#3 Ferris State vs. #6 Lewis - Mar. 14 @ 12:00 P.M. - GVSU Fieldhouse
#4 Northern Michigan vs. #5 Kentucky Wesleyan - Mar. 14 @ 7:30 P.M. - GVSU Fieldhouse
Stay tuned to FerrisStateBulldogs.com for and additional postseason information.