Nov. 18, 2008

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Allendale, Mich. - For the second straight game, the Grand Valley State Laker defense was stingy, holding visiting Lake Erie to just 18 first half points, as GVSU was victorious on Tuesday (Nov. 18), 65-51, over the Storm. The Lakers (2-0) pushed out to an 18-point halftime advantage and held off LEC (0-3) in the second half for their second home win of the young season.

Sophomore forward Kara Crawford opened the game by scoring the first four points, giving GVSU a quick 4-0 lead. Lake Erie trailed 4-3 when a three-pointer from freshman Rachel Woodruff and five straight points from fellow rookie Emma Veach gave the Lakers an early 8-0 run.

Leading 15-10, GVSU received five straight points on two lay-ups and a free throw from senior Kim Wyngaard to extend the early lead to 20-10 with 7:40 remaining. Grand Valley State would not trail in this game, as the Lakers closed the first half with a 9-0 run to make the score 36-18 at intermission.

Defensively, GVSU forced Lake Erie to just 30.4 percent shooting (7-of-23) in the opening half, including 15 first-half turnovers. The Lakers shot 43.8 percent (14-of-32) from the field in the opening 20 minutes and made five three-pointers.

To start the second half, freshman Maddie Burnett drained a three-pointer just 43 seconds into the half to give the Lakers a 21-point lead, their largest of the game. Lake Erie would not go away, cutting the lead to 10 points on a number of occasions.

With the score at 51-41 with just over eight minutes remaining, sophomore Elizabeth Van Tiflin took over. The sharpshooter nailed a three-pointer, then scored on a fast-break lay-up from Crawford and hit a jumper with just under five minutes left. The 7-0 run by Van Tiflin over three and a half minutes gave GVSU a 17-point lead and enough breathing room to last for the rest of the game.

For the second consecutive game, the Laker defense has played well. On Tuesday, Grand Valley State forced the Storm into 23 turnovers and LEC shot just 35.4 percent (17-of-48) from the floor. GVSU has trailed for just one minute and 20 seconds in its first two games.

Van Tiflin earned game-high scoring honors with 13 points and added five rebounds. She shot 5-of-10 from the field and made a pair of triples. Wyngaard neared a double-double with 11 points and eight rebounds, while Crawford also was close to a double-double with 10 points and nine boards. Wyngaard and Crawford both pulled down three offensive rebounds apiece.

Veach led the Lakers with a game-high seven assists and added three of GVSU's 12 steals. Freshman Jessica Trambley scored eight points on 4-of-6 shooting in her collegiate debut.

Grand Valley State heads on the road for the first time this season. The Lakers are at the Drury Lady Panther Classic in Springfield, Mo. this weekend (Nov. 21-22). GVSU takes on Kentucky Wesleyan at 4:00 p.m. on Friday (Nov. 21).