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Allendale, Mich. -- Hitting the road has not been an easy task for the Grand Valley State women's basketball team. Then again, nothing comes easy for teams chasing a conference championship. But the Lakers, who are 2-3 away from home this season, have two chances at some redemption this week. GVSU will travel to Northern Michigan (Jan. 15) and No. 23 Michigan Tech (Jan. 17) seeking a spot atop the GLIAC North Division.
 
Entering these two pivotal league matchups, the Lakers carry a 6-2 mark in GLIAC contests. Michigan Tech leads the division at 7-1, while Northern Michigan is lurking with a 5-3 mark.
 
A pair of wins would guarantee GVSU a share of the division lead for at least five days.
 
"This is part of why we wear the uniform: to go up and take care of business on the road. Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech are two extremely good teams," says head coach Janel Burgess. "When you go on the road, you have to play defense. You're not going to be able to foul; you're going to have to make them earn everything.
 
"It will be a great challenge for us, but we are definitely ready to go."
 
Fortunately for the Lakers, they are carrying plenty of momentum into the Upper Peninsula. Their defense shined in a pair of wins last week, allowing an average of just 63 points.
 
"Our sense of urgency and collective communication were much better. The way we started against Walsh, creating five turnovers in the first four minutes, was very important in setting the tone for the game," says Burgess. "Defense was our weakest link at Wayne State and Findlay. Coming back and performing very well defensively and rebounding the ball created a lot of offensive opportunities for us."
 
Sealing the deal against Walsh proved to be tougher than expected. A double-digit lead was reduced to just two points in the closing 20 seconds of regulation. Brionna Barnett's 20-footer eventually sunk the Cavaliers. Getting into a down-to-the-wire battle, something GVSU has not experienced much of this season, should help its mental toughness going forward.
 
"I liked the aura of our team. It reminded me a lot of the Ashland game (on Dec. 4), where there was about a five-minute stretch when we had to look at each other and say, 'We have to get this job done,'" says Burgess. "I just liked the ownership my young group was able to show."
 
GVSU's offensive firepower will be put to the test in Marquette and Houghton. Although it ranks fifth in the GLIAC with 72.1 points per game, Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan are stout defensively. The former leads the conference at 57.6 points allowed per game, and held Ashland and Lake Erie under 40 points last week. The latter limits opponents to 61.4 points per game, a figure that ranks fifth among GLIAC clubs.
 
"Northern Michigan is going to give you penetration with kick-out threes and a low-post presence. We have to defend the paint and not foul," says Burgess. "Michigan Tech has a very well-balanced attack. They're a very different team (than last season) in the sense of personnel, but still playing Tech basketball, playing great defense and relying on dribble penetration to create open opportunities."
 
Tip off for Thursday's clash with Northern Michigan is set for 5:30 p.m. ET. Saturday's showdown with Michigan Tech is scheduled to get underway at 12:00 p.m.