WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Ferris 58, Grand Valley 50

Sarah Deshone

Ferris State University needed to win, and an ugly win beats a pretty loss any day of the week for coaches at any level.

The Bulldogs managed to grind out a 58-50 win over rival Grand Valley in Jim Wink Arena on Saturday afternoon to improve to 13-4 overall and 10-1 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. They got the win by doing the work needed on defense and on the backboards against the Lakers.


Sarah DeShone, a sophomore guard who referenced the team's commitment to defense in its practices, led the offensive effort as she dropped in a game-high 21 points on 5-of-14 shooting from the floor and 9-of-12 from the free throw line. The only other Bulldog player to score in double digits was senior guard Tricia Principe, who added 13 points on 9-of-10 at the free throw line and 2-of-7 from the floor.

The Bulldogs played some tough defense as it held the Lakers to just 26.1 percent shooting in the second half and 31.1 for the game. The lone offensive bright spot for an injury-decimated Grand Valley team was Briauna Taylor who scored 20 points. She had her moments, but the Bulldogs were able to hold the rest of the team mostly in check as the next highest scorer was Kara Crawford with nine.

It was a big win for the Bulldogs to maintain a strong edge in first place in the GLIAC North Division standings.