Buurma Leads Eagles To First NCAA Women's Basketball Playoff Victory; Ashland Defeats Ferris State 82-69
March 12, 2004

Complete Box Score

For the third consecutive game, Ashland University senior forward Alanna Buurma authored a double-double with points and rebounds. But it was another kind of double-double that the 6-2 forward put together that will ensure she’s part of AU history for years to come.

Alanna Buurma led Ashland to the first NCAA women's basketball tournament win Friday over Ferris State. (File Photo)

Buurma had 19 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots Friday (Mar. 12) in Quincy, IL, as Ashland (23-7) came from behind to stop Ferris State, 82-69. The win came in the first round of the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Great Lakes Regional Tournament. That’s the sixth-seeded Eagles’ first-ever NCAA playoff win.

The victory was also Ashland’s first in three tries against Ferris State this season. Last Friday, FSU knocked off the Eagles in the semifinals of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament. Back in December, the Bulldogs beat the Eagles at Kates Gymnasium and that’s AU’s lone home loss this season.

“It’s very exciting to know we got this far and exciting to be part of school history,” said Buurma.

“I thought Buurma had a heckuva game,” said FSU coach Tracey Fisk. “We couldn’t stop her from anywhere. She took us down low, she really dominated down low in the second half. I applaud her, all her hard work has paid off.”

Buurma had 14 points and eight boards in the second half as Ashland erased a 39-31 halftime deficit. The Eagles got out of the blocks in fine shape, leading 12-4 with 13:31 to go in the first half. But FSU battled back behind some full-court pressure that had the Eagles handling the basketball like they were drinking coffee with a fork.

“Hats off to Ferris State for pressing for 40 minutes, they’re in great shape,” said AU head coach Sue Ramsey. “They ran with us. I think our kids kept their heads and fought through it.”

It would have been easy for the Eagles to doubt themselves. They had seemed to find every way possible to lose to the third-seeded Bulldogs (21-10) this season. Last week, AU led 35-28 at halftime and let that advantage evaporate into an 86-80 overtime setback. In December, Ashland was in front after 20 minutes, 49-41. Obviously the Eagles learned some lessons from those games.

“We knew we had to make some adjustments and we did and that’s what gave us the end result,” said Buurma.

Throughout the second half, AU got good pressure with its half-court defense. Every shot was contested. FSU senior guard Lucy DeMartin finished with 21 points, but only had six in the second half. Senior guard Erin Miller, who along with Martin had 22 points against AU last Friday, managed only nine points.

The Eagles got their running game moving at full speed and that helped them shoot 58.6 percent (17-29) in the second half. In the second half, AU had six turnovers compared to eight for the Bulldogs. Martin shot 2-for-9 over the final 20 minutes. AU outscored Ferris State, 51-30 in the second half.

“They outran us up and down the floor,” lamented Fisk. “They scored a bunch of points in transition. We didn’t get after them defensively as well as we did in the first half. You score 51 points in a half you’ve taken control of the game.”

As for AU being able to control DeMartin, the FSU coach couldn’t offer much in the way of explanation for that.

“I don’t know that they did anything different,” said Fisk. “I think maybe she took herself out of the game. I think she forced some shots and when they didn’t fall she got out of her game. Sometimes it’s tough for kids to recover when shots don’t fall.”

FSU had a 44-37 lead with 15:44 left in regulation. The Eagles wrestled away the game’s momentum over the next 4:11, outscoring the Bulldogs, 17-10 to go in front, 55-54 with 10:33 to play. The last time Ferris State had the lead came with 9:53 to play, 56-55. The teams were tied at 63 with 5:42 to go. Over the next 3:12, Ashland went on a 10-0 surge to put away the game. Senior guard Isolina Brescia, who finished with a team-high 20 points, had five points in that stretch and Buurma had four points.

In addition to Buurma and Brescia, AU had three other players reach double figures in scoring. Freshman guard Amber Rall had 14 points off the bench. Sophomore guard Dee Bethune and junior center Jackie Mason had 12 points apiece. Mason also had nine rebounds and rejected four shots. As a team, Ashland shot 50.8 percent (30-59) from the floor, 54.5 percent (6-11) from three-point range and 80 percent (16-20) at the free throw line.

“We’re characterized by depth,” said Ramsey, who coaches a team where five players average 11 or more points per game. “They’re unselfish and play hard and well together. I’m even more proud after a win like today.”

Ferris State hit 30.5 percent (25-82) of its attempts from the floor and 64.7 percent (11-17) at the free throw line. FSU outrebounded the Eagles, 48-44.

Ashland will play the winner of the Southern Indiana-Lake Superior State game on Saturday (Mar. 13) at 5 p.m. Lake State is the second seed and USI is seeded seventh. Ashland owns a 91-87 overtime win over Lake Superior State this season. Late Note: Lake Superior State defeated Southern Indiana, 100-86, setting up a Saturday semifinal with the Eagles.

“I think that sometimes we can’t believe that we’re here – it’s exciting and we need to keep our maturity level and focus on staying together as a team,” said Brescia. “We just have to stay focused for the next game, the next game and then the next game.”