Feb. 26, 2005

Box Score

Grand Valley State ended regular season play with a 90-72 win over Northern Michigan Saturday afternoon. The Lakers improve to 22-5 overall and 16-2 in GLIAC action. GVSU will host a first round game of the GLIAC Tournament on Tuesday, March 1 with their opponent and time to be determined.

Grand Valley jumped out to a 17-8 lead on a junior forward Niki Reams layup at the 14:02 mark in the first half. Northern Michigan came back to take a two point lead with 7:30 remaining, but the Lakers went on a 12-5 run to close out the first half with a 47-40 lead.

GVSU pushed the lead to 24 (79-55) in the second half on two free throws by senior guard Janine Guastella with 5:14 left. The Lakers pulled down 46 rebounds, including 15 on the offensive glass, while the Wildcats tallied just 29 total rebounds. GVSU also tallied 26 points off 19 NMU turnovers.

Leading the way for the Lakers was Reams who scored a season-high 37 points. She also added 12 rebounds, eight offensive, and three steals. Reams was 10-of-13 from the field and 14-of-18 from the free throw line. Sophomore guard Erika Rsykamp tied her season-high with 22 points and added four steals and three rebounds. Guastella recorded 11 rebounds, nine points, three assists, and two steals, while freshman guard Crystal Zick added five points and six assists. Sophomore forward Julia Braseth posted six points and five rebounds.

Grand Valley will either play #4-seeded Northern Michigan or #3-seeded Michigan Tech in the first round of the GLIAC Tournament.