Jan. 27, 2007

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Allendale, Mich. - #10 Grand Valley State defeated Ashland, 94-61 in a GLIAC crossover at the GVSU Fieldhouse Saturday afternoon before a crowd of 1,789. The 10th-ranked Lakers improve to 16-4 overall and 9-2 in GLIAC play, while Ashland drops to 10-11 overall and 4-8 in the conference. GVSU will continue its four game home stint on Thursday, Feb. 1 against Lake Superior State at 6:00 p.m.

Grand Valley State started the game with a 12-0 run, sparked by senior guard Taushauna Churchwell who tallied five of the points. A three-pointer by junior guard Courtney Hammond at the 13:08 mark put the Lakers ahead, 20-5. Ashland scored seven straight points to cut the lead to 20-12 and the scored the next eight out of 13 points to cut the deficit to 25-20. Grand Valley went on a 11-5 run to push its lead back to 11 points, 36-25. The Eagles cut the lead to four points, but GVSU held onto a 42-36 lead.

Ashland trailed by just five points (45-40) at the 17:45 mark in the second half, but the Lakers went on a 17-2 run to take a commanding 20 point lead (62-42) with 13:01 left. Crystal Zick scored nine points in the run, while Erika Ryskamp chipped in six on a pair of three-pointers. Grand Valley dominated the rest of the game, scoring 15 straight points and holding Ashland scoreless over a five minute span. The Lakers built their largest lead of the game, 36 points (93-57) lead with just 57 ticks in the game.

Grand Valley State was led by junior guard Crystal Zick who tallied 23 points, two assists, and a steal. Senior guard Erika Ryskamp recorded 17 points and two rebounds. Taushauna Churchwell added 14 points and hit on 10-of-11 free throws. Erin Cyplik hit a pair of three-pointers en route to a 10-point, four assist afternoon. Courtney Hammond added eight points and a career-high nine caroms.

GVSU hit 55.3 percent of its shots from the floor (26-47), 60.0 percent from the 3-point line (9-15) and 91.7 percent from the charity stripe (33-36). The Lakers hit an incredible 73.7 percent from the floor (14-19)in the second half. Grand Valley State outrebounded Ashland 32-19 and forced the Eagles into 14 turnovers.