The Grand Valley State women's soccer team will play in the 2015 GLIAC Tournament Championship on Sunday, November 6^th.  It is a familiar position for the Laker's, who have both competed in and won the past seven tournament championships dating back to 2008.
 
The Lakers were aggressive early, setting up multiple scoring chances from the onset of the match. The best chance for the Lakers came in the 19^th minute, when a well struck ball from Katie Klunder was rejected by the cross bar. Despite keeping up solid offensive pressure, GVSU would not convert any of those opportunities into goals until the 26^th minute.
 
Junior midfielder Marti Corby, fresh off being recognized as the GLIAC Offensive Player of the Year was brought down just outside the 18 yard box by a Panther defender. Her resulting free kick was a thing of beauty, and gave the Lakers the elusive first goal in the contest
 
"I thought we sent the tempo well, we generated some scoring chances early," GVSU Head Coach Jeff Hosler said.
 
The Lakers were challenged on defense by the Panthers attack, which did not relent despite the deficit. Several defensive lapses on the back line nearly yielded Panther goals in the first half.  Midfielder Lauren Pratt caused problems for the Lakers late in the half.
 
"Defensively, we were thrown off our rhythm early, caught off guard by playing a team that didn't sit back on us, and pushed forward and I felt like we started off disorganized defensively because of that."
 
Coming out of halftime and holding onto a meager 1-0 lead, the Lakers quickly opened up renewed offensive pressure on Ohio Dominican, and were rewarded with a goal just two minutes into the second half. Junior forward Kendra Stauffer added onto her impressive body of work this season, dribbling past two defenders right in front of the net before beating the Panther goalkeeper with a low shot to the far side of the net, her 13^th of the season.
 
40 minutes would pass before the next Laker goal, and with the match in hand, Samantha Riga's goal off of a feed from Jayma Martin in the 87^th minute was just the icing on the cake for a Grand Valley squad seeking their eight straight tournament championship. Riga's goal was the sixth of her freshman season, and was one of many highlights for the less experienced Lakers on the night.
 
"We had several young players play really well today, show some growth as players. Mackenzie Fox and Tracey McCoy played well today, and for Samantha Riga to find the back of the net for us again, in consecutive matches, is really important for us as a reserve player."
 
Despite a significant advantage in shots (37 to 6), and leaving a few goals out on the field, Hosler was pleased with his team's effort against an Ohio Dominican squad that certainly came to play.
 
"Throughout the match you've got to have short term memory, and refocus back on the next play (after a missed goal), because if you don't it's going to haunt you throughout and you won't be ready to make the next play. I think with the opportunities we had we'd like to see more go in, but when you're in the postseason and you find ways to win, and do it in dominant fashion, you've got to take that confidence into the next match."
 
Freshman goalkeeper Emily Maresh earned the shutout in goal, making three saves for her 12^th shutout of the season.
 
In Sunday's championship, Grand Valley will face off against the #3 seed Ashland Eagles, a 4-3 winner over the second seed Ferris State Bulldogs. Kick off is set for 1 p.m on Sunday at GVSU Soccer Field in Allendale, Michigan.