Findlay, Ohio -- Traveling has been tough this season for the Grand Valley State women's basketball team, as it suffered a third consecutive road loss on Sunday (Jan. 4) afternoon at Findlay. The No. 17 Lakers, who fell to 7-3 overall and 4-2 in GLIAC play, dropped a 79-60 decision against the Oilers.
 
Even with double-digit outings from Kayla Dawson, Piper Tucker and Brionna Barnett, GVSU could not overcome its 41-percent shooting performance. Defensively, stops were hard to come by for the Lakers. Findlay, which entered the day as the second-best shooting team in the GLIAC, went 30 for 57 (52.6 percent) from the field. GVSU did force 14 turnovers, though, and tallied 15 points off those takeaways.
 
Dawson led all GVSU scorers with 14 points and hauled in five rebounds. Tucker and Barnett added 12 points apiece and combined for seven rebounds and three steals. Barnett added four assists as well.
 
In just 17 minutes of action, freshman center Korynn Hincka made quite an impact for the Lakers. The Posen, Michigan native totaled eight points on 4-of-7 shooting. She also collected three rebounds.
 
Although GVSU never held a lead, it kept things close until midway through the opening half. Findlay led by five points or less until the 10:23 mark. From there, the Oilers closed the frame on a 17-9 run, taking a 37-24 lead into the locker room at halftime.
 
The Lakers did manage to cut the deficit in half. With eight straight points from Tucker and a layup by Hincka in the opening three minutes of the second stanza, GVSU battled to within six points.
 
A back-to-back triples by senior guard Meryl Cripe and sophomore guard Taylor Lutz capped an 8-1 run that trimmed the deficit to four (58-54). The Lakers would not get any closer, eventually falling behind by as many as 19 points in the final six minutes of regulation.
 
GVSU will return to Allendale, where it is 5-0 this season, on Thursday (Jan. 8) for a conference showdown with Walsh. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Fieldhouse Arena.