Jan. 14, 2012

Box Score |  Photo Gallery 

ALLENDALE, Mich. – The Grand Valley State women’s basketball team snapped its four-game conference win streak as the Lakers dropped a tough 61-57 decision to Hillsdale on Saturday night.

The loss evens the Lakers’ record to 8-8 and 5-4 in the GLIAC, while Hillsdale improves to 7-8 and 4-5 in the conference.

Junior Briauna Taylor (Livonia, Mich.) scored a team-high 18 points on 8-of-15 from the floor including 2-for-5 from behind the arc.  The forward also tallied eight rebounds, three assists and four steals. 

Brittany Taylor (Livonia, Mich.) notched her first career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, while dishing out four assists.  Every Laker off the bench had at least two points and two rebounds as GVSU held a 40-31 edge off the board.  Senior Kara Crawford (Winamac, Ind.), redshirt sophomore Kellie Watson (Ionia, Mich.) and sophomore Dani Crandall (Eaton Rapids, Mich.) each tallied six points. 

Hillsdale overcame a three-point halftime deficit to outscore GVSU, 38-31, in the second stanza.  The Chargers capitalized at the free throw line, shooting 16-of-19 for the game.

The Lakers rallied from 49-38 to tie the score at 57-57 on traditional three-point play from Crandall.  Hillsdale then got the ball back on a turnover and scored a bucket to lead 59-57 with 24 seconds to go.  

A missed jumper looked to be rebounded by GVSU, but a foul was called to take the Chargers back to their end of the court. Chelsea Harrison made her two shots at the line to secure the win.

Grand Valley State opened the game on a 6-0 run, holding Hillsdale scoreless until the 15:44 mark when Marissa DeMott’s jumper started the Chargers’ own 10-0 run to lead 10-6 at 11:41. Both teams were hampered by turnovers as the teams combined for half of the first-half turnovers just nine minutes into the first half.

Crawford tied the score at 10-10 before Hillsdale took the lead again, 12-10 with less than 10 to play.  Back-to-back treys from Kellie Watson gave the Lakers a 16-12 lead and GVSU by as much as eight, 26-18, with two minutes remaining.

After holding a slight 26-23 lead at halftime, the Lakers allowed a 15-4 Hillsdale run to open the second half for a 38-30 lead by the first media timeout.  The Chargers extended their lead to as many as 11, 49-38, with less than nine minutes to play. 

Sophomore Breanna Kellogg, who finished with five points and four rebounds, (DeWitt, Mich.) hit a three-pointer to start the 13-6 run that tied the game and Briauna Taylor hit seven of her 18 points during the stretch.

The Lakers take to the road for the rest of January as GVSU heads north to look for revenge against Northern Michigan on Thursday, Jan. 19 at 5:30 p.m. before taking on nationally-ranked Michigan Tech on Saturday, Jan. 21 at 1 p.m.