Sept. 12, 2007

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Allendale, Mich. - Ashley Elsass sure knows when to score her goals. The junior forward has four goals this season for the #1 Lakers, and three of them have been the difference in the match. Elsass notched her third game-winner of the year on Wednesday, scoring the opening goal in a 5-0 rout of Lewis University. Katy Tafler added two goals, both assisted by Elsass, and an assist to give her a team-leading 19 points, and the GVSU defense limited LU to just one shot on goal.

The match started out slowly with the only goal of the first half coming in the 13th minute. Tafler fed Elsass, who ripped a shot at the goal. Her first try was blocked by a Flyer defender, but the ball rebounded right back to Elsass, who buried her second chance from the penalty kick marker to give the Lakers a 1-0 lead. Both teams played defensively in the first period and neither squad was able to generate many scoring chances. After 45 minutes, GVSU was outshooting the Flyers by an 8-1 margin.

The Lakers turned it up in the second half and controlled the play from start to finish. At the 60:10 mark, Jamie Radley drove down the right side and served a ball into the box that Sue Christenson headed past LU keeper Andrea Iossi. The Laker attack continued, as Tafler scored her seventh goal of the season just 2:33 later when Elsass played a brilliant through ball that found Tafler in the box to make the score 3-0. Elsass and Tafler hooked up again just 7:06 later, this time getting a little lucky. Tafler was down in the box when a rebound came out to Elsass. Her shot glanced off Tafler's back and into the net, giving Tafler her second goal of the game and eighth of the year. Kristen Eible concluded the scoring when a corner kick bounced around the box and found its way to her foot. Eible made the most of it, ripping a shot that hit nothing but twine, giving her her third goal of the season and the Lakers a 5-0 lead.

With 14 shots in the second half, the Lakers ended the game with 22 in the game, while Lewis managed just two and only one on goal. 12 of GVSU's 22 shots were on frame. Kristina Nasturzio recorded one save in 75:15 of action, while Lindsey Klykken faced no shots in 14:45. Iossi saved six shots out of 11 in her 75:15, while Lisa Raciak came on in relief and notched one save in 14:45.

The Lakers have the next ten days off. Their next game will be in Evansville, Ind., as #1 Grand Valley State will take on Southern Indiana with opening kickoff slated for 1 p.m.