The Ashland University women’s basketball team, for the fifth year in a row, advanced to the semifinal round of the NCAA tournament this year with a win of the Ferris State Bulldogs, 62-60 on Friday Afternoon.

Defensive prowess of the Eagles shined in the opening frame of action with the Eagles leading by 16-10 at the end of the first quarter.

“I thought defensively that’s what we’ve hung our hat on all year, and I think today was another showcase of that,” Women’s Basketball Head Coach Kari Pickens said.

In the second quarter the Eagles were hounded by the Bulldogs full court press defense. The Eagles put seven more points on the scoreboard, leading by three at the halftime break, 23-20. The low scoring affair moved by swiftly due to lack of stoppages and whistles.

However, coming out of the halftime locker room that was anything but the case. The Eagles picked up five team fouls in nearly the first four minutes of the second half.

“I think there was a lot of opportunity to get distracted by calls, by questioning calls, everything like that, but my players just stayed poised,” said Pickens.

Ferris State pulled within one point of the Eagles in the third stanza, but that was the closest they would get to taking down the Eagles for the rest of the game. As the fourth quarter commenced the Eagles had a six-point advantage.

Similarly to the third frame it was five quick fouls on the Eagles, to put Ferris State in the bonus poised to make a run.

The Eagles and the Bulldogs would trade buckets for almost the entire fourth frame with 42 total points shared between both sides.

With only 24 seconds left in the contest, the Eagles led by six points with the shot clock reading just two seconds remaining. Senior forward Zoe Miller caught the ball in the high post and made the right-handed push shot to end to secure the win.

“What was going through my mind was just shoot with confidence, and my team believes in me,” said Miller.

That confidence has propelled the Eagles to now 25 wins in a row, and another birth in the Midwest Regional semifinal game.

A quick reset will be needed by the Eagles with tip off in the semifinal game vs. the Northern Michigan Wildcats at 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 15. Fans can find live and free coverage of the Midwest Regional tournament on 88.9 WRDL and online at wrdlfm.com.