BIG RAPIDS -- The Lady Cardinals led wire-to-wire on Thursday (Feb. 6) night on the road at Ferris State, defeating the GLIAC North Division leaders by a final score of 82-68.
Saginaw Valley improves to 10-12 overall and 6-8 in the GLIAC while the Bulldogs fall to 15-7 and 9-5 in league play.
The Cardinals led throughout the opening quarter and first half, beginning with a quick 6-0 lead after two buckets from Tori DePerry and another from Kaitlyn Zarycki. The Bulldogs would close that gap a bit but the visitors were able to remain out in front by a 15-14 score at the end of the first quarter.
In the second frame, SVSU pushed its lead out to eight points (29-21) after a layup from Zarycki with 4:52 showing on the clock. After the Bulldogs trimmed the deficit to five points at 34-29, Zarycki made two straight baskets and another followed from Mariah Cook to give the Cardinals their first double digit lead of the game. That was 40-29 and would serve as the halftime score.
Saginaw Valley shot great through the first 20 minutes, going 18-of-31 for a 58.1% mark while Ferris was 11-of-26 for a 42.3% mark.
Zarycki led the way for the Cardinals in the opening half, making 7-of-10 shots for 15 points with three rebounds and a trio of assists. Maddie Maloney added seven points while Cook and Maddie Barrie each had five.
The third quarter saw the visitors outscore FSU 23-13 and leading by a game-high 19 points at 53-34 after Barrie hit a triple for the Cardinals. The lead would carry into the fourth quarter at 17 points after Kaitlyn Geers hit a layup right before the clock expired to put the score at 63-46.
The Bulldogs posted a narrow 22-19 edge in fourth quarter scoring but that was not near enough, as the Cardinals sealed the 14 point victory, 82-68.
Inside the Boxscore
- Zarycki finished with another stellar performance, hitting on 10-of-14 shots and finishing with a team-high 25 points. She added six rebounds, five steals and four assists.
- Maloney added 15 points, six assists, two steals, two boards and a block for SV.
- DePerry had 14 points with a game-high nine rebounds with an assist. She was solid at the free-throw line, connecting on 8-of-10 tries there and was named the Meijer "Player of the Game."
- Barrie finished with 11 points, a rebound and assist in the contest.
- Saginaw Valley matched a season-high with 21 assists in the game and shot a solid 52.8% (28-53) from the floor.
Up Next...
SVSU plays next in Sault Ste. Marie, making the trip north to face Lake Superior State University. That game will take place on Saturday (Feb. 8) at 1:00 p.m. Follow the action live at svsucardinals.com.
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