Big First Half Lifts #15 Ferris State To Weekend-Opening Victory In Missouri

Big Rapids, Mich. - Nationally 15th-ranked Ferris State University started its second-straight women's basketball trip to Missouri on Saturday (Nov. 9) night, beating Southwest Baptist 82-75 on a neutral floor at the O'Reilly Family Event Center in Springfield.

The Bulldogs moved to 2-1 overall this year with a strong opening half of action. FSU led 49-31 at halftime and pushed the margin to as many as 24 points in the third quarter before holding on down the stretch.

Ferris State senior guard Kadyn Blanchard had a big day for the Bulldogs with a game-high 31 points in the win. She also added seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.

FSU's Mia Riley added 17 points and junior Mya Hiram poured in 11 points to go with seven rebounds in the victory. The Bulldogs also got nine points from senior Kenzie Bowers along with eight points by junior Elle Irwin.

Ferris State shot 47.1% for the game and made nine-of-27 (33.3%) long range tries in addition to seven-of-12 (58.3%) free throws.

The Bulldogs outscored Southwest Baptist 24-12 in points off turnovers and 42-30 inside the paint while owning a 19-10 edge in second chance production. Overall, the Bulldogs held the lead for more than 32 minutes of the game.

The Bearcats were led by Odett Schlegl with 18 points. Kristin Edmonds chipped in 16 points, Amber Storr scored 15 points and Tori Hamilton finished with 11 points. SBU shot 46.7% from the floor and went 11-of-23 (47.8%) from deep in addition to eight-of-20 (40%) at the free throw line.

Ferris State will wrap up its trip on Sunday (Nov. 10) with a 3:30 p.m. (ET) matchup against host Drury (Mo.).