SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State women's basketball team looks to build off of last weekend's exciting overtime win over Davenport as the team hosts the Ferris State Bulldogs on Thursday, Feb. 10 at 5:30 p.m. in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. The Lakers will play their second Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) game of the week on Saturday, Feb. 12 at 1:00 p.m. as the team takes on the Northwood Timberwolves on Saturday, Feb. 12 in Midland, Mich. at the Riepma Arena. The Lakers will wrap up the stretch of games on Tuesday, Feb. 15 as the team hosts the Wayne State Warriors in a game rescheduled from Saturday, Jan. 8. The game between the Lakers and the Warriors is set for a 2:30 p.m. tipoff in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.
Last Time Out
The Lakers are coming off a hard-fought overtime win against the Davenport Panthers on Saturday, Feb. 5 in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium, winning the conference battle by a final score of 65-64. Last Thursday, the Lakers dropped a GLIAC game to a very talented Grand Valley team. Following the weekend, the Lakers hold a 3-14 overall record and a 2-9 mark in conference play.
In Saturday's win, the Lakers were led by senior Makenzie Bray who finished the game with a career-high 27 points. Bray went 8-for-13 from the field which included a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the three point line. In addition, Bray went 8-for-10 from the free throw line, which included the eventual game winning point in overtime.
Freshman CeCe Hacker ranked second on the team with 14 points, all of which came in the second half. Hacker led her team with seven assists while also adding eight rebounds in the win. Mattison Rayman capped off the team's top three scorers in the win as she recorded 11 points for the Lakers as well as a career-best 20 rebounds. It marked the eighth double-double of the season for Rayman.
The Lakers
The Lakers are led by Brandon Lokken, is in his fifth season in the role, while assistant coach Allison Todd begins her third season with the Lakers. Through 17 games this season, the Lakers average 52.1 points per game on a 36.4 shooting percentage and 32.4 rebounds per game.
The team will look to a number of upperclassmen to help lead the Lakers after coming off a challenging 2020-21 season as the team felt the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Junior forward Mattison Rayman, who was named Second Team All-GLIAC last season, will be the driving force behind the Lakers after coming off a great sophomore season. Senior forward Makenzie Bray will be looked upon by Coach Lokken after a solid season for the Lakers last year while junior guard Margot Woughter will play a big role for the Lakers after missing most of last season with an injury.
Lake Superior State will also look for contributions from junior forward Kelly Olthof, sophomore guard Jaden Wilder, sophomore guard Jozie Bontrager, and junior guard Carson Nitz. The team will have one newcomer this season, CeCe Hacker, a freshman guard from Omaha, Neb.
Leading the Lakers
Through 17 games this season, the trio of Rayman, Bray, and Woughter have been leading the way offensively for the Lakers. Both Bray and Rayman rank in the top-13 scorers in the GLIAC this season and Woughter joins her teammates as the third Laker to average double-digits in points per game.
Rayman and Bray are tied for the team-lead in points per game with 13.1 each and Woughter has averaged 11.9 points per game this season. Rayman enters this weekend's contests ranking second in the conference in both rebounds per game (10.0) and blocks per game (1.5). The junior forward is one of two players in the conference this season to average 10 or more rebounds per game.
Junior Kelly Olthof leads the Lakers in shooting percentage this season with a 47.7% mark while freshman guard CeCe Hacker leads her teammates in assists per game this season with 2.9 per game.
The Ferris State Bulldogs
The Ferris State Bulldogs have posted a 15-7 overall record and a 9-5 mark in conference play this season. Ferris State has averaged 72.2 points per game this season on a 40.5 shooting percentage and a conference-leading 35.9 mark from three while also adding 38.6 rebounds per game. Earlier this season, the Bulldogs defeated the Lakers by a final score of 90-38 in a game in Big Rapids. The Bulldogs are led by the duo of Kadyn Blanchard and Adrienne Anderson, who rank first and second on the team in points per game. Blanchard, a sophomore guard, leads the Bulldogs with 14.0 points per game, which is good for sixth in the GLIAC and ranks first on the team with a 41.5 three-point shooting percentage. Anderson, a redshirt senior, ranks seventh in the GLIAC with an average of 13.8 points per game this season. Chloe Idoni (11.3 ppg) and Mallory McCartney (10.6 ppg) have also had strong seasons.The Bulldogs are led by Kurt Westendorp, who is in his second season as head coach at Ferris.
The Northwood University Timberwolves
The Northwood Timberwolves have combined for a 14-6 overall record through 20 games played, which includes a 8-5 record in GLIAC competition. The Timberwolves head into Saturday's game riding an eight-game win streak dating back to Jan. 8. Through 20 games this season, Northwood averages 74.3 points per game on a 41.4 shooting percentage while adding 37.4 rebounds per game.The Timberwolves are led by junior guard Makenzie Todd who currently ranks fifth in the conference with 14.1 points per game. Senior guard Ellie Taylor (11.8 ppg) and sophomore center Alana Nelson (11.3 ppg) round out the team's top three scorers. Nelson leads the team with 7.0 rebounds per game, which is good for fourth in the GLIAC. The Timberwolves are led by head coach Autumn Haggadone, who is in the midst of her first season in the role at Northwood.
The Wayne State Warriors
The Wayne State Warriors have posted a 13-5 overall record and a 9-4 mark in conference play this season. Wayne State has averaged 69.6 points per game this season on a 42.0 shooting percentage while also adding a conference-best 42.9 rebounds per game. The Warriors are led by the trio of senior guard Kate Sherwood, senior forward Grace George, and senior forward Sam Cherney. Sherwood leads the team with 13.1 points per game, which ranks 13th overall among all GLIAC players this season. George, who has averaged 12.0 points per game for the Warriors, leads the GLIAC with a 46.7 shooting percentage from three this season. Cherney rounds out Wayne State's top three scorers as she has averaged 11.1 points per game while she leads the conference with 11.7 rebounds per game. The Warriors are led by Carrie Lohr, who is in the midst of her 11th season as head coach at Wayne State.
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