Grand Valley State completed a great trip to the Upper Peninsula on Saturday (Oct. 31), as the Lakers again blocked their way to a 3-1 victory at Michigan Tech. GVSU took a 2-0 lead in the match and closed out the Huskies with a fourth set victory, winning by scores of 25-16, 25-18, 21-25, and 25-14.
 
After picking up a strong five-set win at Northern Michigan on Friday night, the Lakers still seemed fresh on Saturday afternoon against the Huskies, hitting .208 and recording 17 total blocks, while holding MTU to a .042 mark and forcing 34 Husky errors.
 
The victory puts GVSU at 16-8 overall and 10-3 in GLIAC play, while Michigan Tech drops to 17-8 on the season and 8-5 in the conference standings. Friday night's win at Northern Michigan looks even better for the Lakers, as NMU rebounded to knock off #1 Ferris State on Saturday in a 3-2 upset.
 
Grand Valley State can thank its blocking - in part - for two clutch road victories this weekend. On Friday against NMU, the Lakers tallied 15 total blocks in five sets, but stepped up for 17 team blocks versus Michigan Tech in Saturday's four-set win. Those numbers follow the 16-block performance at home against Findlay last Saturday.
 
Blocking totals like that have not been seen in Allendale in quite some time. It was the first time GVSU has notched at least 15 blocks in three consecutive matches since at least the 1998 season. Moreover, the team's 32 blocks in its last two matches are the most in nearly five years, since the 2010 NCAA Tournament. On Nov. 20-21, 2010, the Lakers recorded 14 blocks against Lewis and 20 blocks in the Midwest Region championship victory over Indianapolis.
 
On Friday night, freshman Staci Brower supplied 10 kills and 10 blocks against NMU, the first Laker to post a double-double in kills and blocks since Rebeccah Rapin did so with 16 kills and 13 blocks in that Nov. 21, 2010 title victory against Indianapolis. Brower's milestone did not last as long as Rapin's accomplishment, as senior Kaleigh Lound managed to do the same on Saturday.
 
Lound tallied a team-high 13 kills (while hitting .323) and added 10 blocks (two solo, eight assists) for an outstanding offensive-defensive performance. For her part, Brower was also very good, as the rookie hit .346 and picked up 12 kills and five blocks.
 
Senior Betsy Ronda added 15 digs, nine kills, five blocks, and three service aces, while redshirt freshman Shannon Winicki supplied seven kills in 18 swings and also blocked five attempts. Sophomore setter Katie Olson notched 26 assists and 25 digs, the first Laker since Kaitlyn Wolters on Sept. 5, 2014 to post at least 25 assists and digs in the same match.
 
The Lakers opened up a 14-10 lead in set one and Lound started a four-point run with a kill. After two MTU errors, senior Taylor Shomin served an ace to make the score 18-10. Later in the set, Winicki teamed with both Brower and Lound for blocks, then she added a kill to up the lead to 24-15. The Lakers closed the set after a Husky hitting error; Michigan Tech hit just .021 in the opening frame.
 
That figure was reduced to -.025 in set two, as Grand Valley State opened a 7-3 lead on aces from Ronda and freshman Taylor Stewart. Michigan Tech, however, rebounded to take an 11-8 lead thanks to an 8-1 run. Three combined rejections from Lound and Ronda got the Lakers back on track and put GVSU ahead, 14-13. The Lakers would hold the lead the remainder of the set, as the advantage grew to 18-13 after back-to-back kills from Lound and senior Jessica Majerle. From there, Brower put down four kills - all delivered from Olson - to end the set, 25-18.
 
Set three was tied nine times, including the last time at 14-14. Michigan Tech opened a 20-15 advantage, but GVSU got back to within two points (21-19) on consecutive kills from Ronda and a solo block from Winicki. MTU would score four of the next six points to finish the frame and send the match to the fourth set.
 
GVSU scored the first five points of set four, with Lound tallying a pair of kills. The lead jumped to 10-3 after kills from Brower and Wolters and a combined rejection by the duo. With a 13-8 advantage, the Lakers scored seven straight points, as Majerle supplied two kills and a block and Lound added two rejections in the 7-0 run. Brower provided the final three kills of the match for the Lakers, clinching the victory.
 
In the match, GVSU led in kills (50-41), assists (45-40), aces (6-3), and a wide margin in blocks (17-4). Both teams recorded 80 digs. Shomin (13 digs, two aces) and Wolters (12 digs, two blocks, two kills) joined Olson and Ronda with double-digit digs. Stewart handed out 17 assists and picked up seven digs and an ace.
 
The Lakers will make the return trip from the Upper Peninsula and play their next three matches in Allendale. On Tuesday (Nov. 3), GVSU hosts its West Michigan rival, Ferris State, at 7:00 p.m. The Bulldogs were undefeated in conference play and ranked #1 in the country before today's loss at Northern Michigan. FSU knocked off the Lakers 3-1 on Sept. 29 in Big Rapids.