Nov. 24, 2009

Box Score

Rensselaer, Ind. - Strong outside shooting and a tremendous rebounding effort pushed Grand Valley State to an 82-71 victory at Saint Joseph's (Ind.) on Tuesday night (Nov. 24). The Lakers drained eight triples in the first half and 10 three-pointers for the game, while outrebounding the Pumas, 50-23. GVSU owned a 26-4 rebounding advantage in the first half and led by as many as 17 points in the second stanza.

The Lakers improve to 2-1 with their second straight victory, while Saint Joseph's falls to 0-3 on the year. It was the first road game of the season for Grand Valley State, who opened with home contests against Drury and Kentucky Wesleyan last week.

In the opening half, GVSU would put on quite a shooting exhibition from downtown, as the Lakers made 8-of-12 three-pointers for a 66.7 percentage. Trailing 16-11 with just over 12 minutes left, Grand Valley State ran off a 9-0 run with a jumper from point guard Jasmine Padin, a layup from sophomore Emma Veach, and a jumpshot from freshman center Alex Stelfox. The bucket from Stelfox put the score at 17-16 and the Lakers would not trail again. Moments later, freshman Brittany Taylor knocked down a three-pointer to conclude the nine-point run.

Junior Elizabeth Van Tiflin and Padin each drained a three-pointer in a 26-second span around the six-minute mark of the first half. Minutes later, junior forward Kara Crawford made her first triple of the year, while freshman guard Lauren Stodola scored her first collegiate points with a three-pointer that put the Lakers ahead, 41-30. Stodola's second trifecta with seven seconds remaining in the half put Grand Valley State on top, 48-38, at intermission.

In the opening stanza, six different GVSU players made a three-pointer and owned an incredible 26-4 lead on the boards. The Lakers totaled 11 offensive rebounds in the first half, including eight from Veach, who added 10 points and four assists. Overall, Grand Valley State shot 50.0 percent (18-of-36) from the field in the first frame, while the Pumas connected at a 51.9 percent (14-of-27) clip.

Brittany Taylor's layup at the 15:16 mark put the Lakers on top by a 57-40 score, their biggest lead of the night. With GVSU leading 60-43, Saint Joseph's scored the next 15 points to trail 60-58 with over eight minutes to play in the game. Grand Valley State answered by scoring 11 of the next 13 points, including a pair of layups from Stelfox and a three-pointer from Padin.

Saint Joseph's would get to within five points at 72-67 with 2:48 left, but Van Tiflin made a layup and Padin's two free throws put Grand Valley State far enough ahead to close out the win.

Five Lakers scored in double figures, as Veach led all players in points (17), rebounds (12), and steals (five). She added five assists. The 12 rebounds tied a career-high, while her five steals were a personal best. Her backcourt mate, Padin, scored 13 points and dished out eight assists.

Stelfox supplied 12 points, six rebounds, two assists, and a blocked shot. Crawford tallied her best game of the season with 11 points and seven rebounds, while Brittany Taylor recorded 10 points in 18 minutes off the bench. Van Tiflin was one point shy of a double-double, as she picked up 11 rebounds to go with nine points and two steals.

Grand Valley State opens up conference play against West Michigan rival Ferris State next Monday (Nov. 30) in Big Rapids, Mich. That game features a 6:00 p.m. tip-off.