The Saginaw Valley women’s basketball team split GLIAC conference games last weekend, beating Ferris State in overtime at home Thursday, Jan. 19, and losing on the road to Grand Valley on Saturday, Jan. 21.
SVSU hosted the Bulldogs in the teams’ first matchup of the season. A strong first half of basketball saw the Lady Cardinals hold a nine-point lead at halftime. That lead quickly evaporated after a poor offensive third quarter from the Cardinals saw the Bulldogs close the gap to just three points.
The Cardinals played better in the fourth quarter, but Ferris State was still able to capitalize on the poor third quarter, tying the game at 64 at the end of regulation. However, the Lady Cards responded and got the victory in overtime, winning 70-68.
Senior guard Katelyn Carriere made two free throws with seven seconds left to put the team up by two points. The defense held strong on the last possession of the game, securing the win.
Senior forward Emily Wendling had a solid outing. She posted her third straight double-double, scoring a game-high 23 points on 8-18 shooting, including seven of 10 from the free-throw line. She also tied a career high with 17 rebounds and stole the ball three times.
Carriere posted 18 points on 6-22 shooting in her 40 minutes on the court. She also had seven assists and three steals.
Hannah Settingsgaard scored a career-high 11 points. The sophomore guard was efficient from the free-throw line, making all eight of her attempts.
After the game, Emily Wendling acknowledged the team’s third quarter woes but was proud of the way they overcame those struggles in the fourth quarter and overtime.
“We definitely struggled [in the third quarter],” Wendling said. “I think we just tried to slow it down a little and not force things as much. Going into the fourth quarter, we just wanted to really focus on trusting our system and play more as a team. Overall, I am really proud of how our whole team responded on a tough night for us.”
Head coach Jamie Pewinski noted that the team fought hard for the win and emphasized how tough the GLIAC conference is.
“(Thursday) was probably one of the better wins we’ve had,” Pewinski said. “While we didn’t play our best game, we were able to make some plays down the stretch to secure a victory. Our conference is too good to think you aren’t going to have to grind or come from behind at some point, so we are excited to get the win. We will have to clean some things up tomorrow, but for tonight, we will enjoy the outcome and continue our process of becoming a better team.”
The Cardinals then traveled to Grand Valley to take on the Lakers but lost the game 63-57.
The Lakers seemed to be in control for most of the game, which only had two total lead changes.
The Cardinals shot the ball well from all over the court, making 24 of 56 attempts. The team also made eight of its 17 three-point attempts.
The team was held to one free-throw attempt for the game while the Lakers made 12 of their 17 shots from the charity stripe.
Wendling and Carriere led the charge on offense as the only two members of the team to score in double figures.
Carriere shot 7-14 from the field. The guard was efficient from beyond the arc, making four of her eight attempts. In addition to her 18 points, Carriere had five rebounds and three assists before fouling out.
Wendling also shot 50 percent from the field, scoring 15 points on 7-14 shooting.
She also grabbed four boards in her 22 minutes of play.
Sophomore Abby Duffy scored six points on 3-8 shooting. The forward grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.
After the game, Pewinski recognized that the team did not make enough plays in the long run and lost to a good GLIAC opponent in the Lakers.
“We had really good effort (Saturday) and ultimately didn’t make enough plays to get the win against a really good Grand Valley team,” she said. “We look forward to getting back in the gym (Sunday) and making some adjustments. Overall, we are excited to put the lessons learned in this game into play over the next 10 games.”
