GLIAC Tournament Homepage | Lakers in GLIAC Tournament History
 
Since 1984, Grand Valley State has competed in all 29 GLIAC Softball Tournaments that have been played (the 2004 and 2010 tourneys were cancelled due to inclement weather), but the Lakers' opening round opponent on Friday is a new one. GVSU and Walsh - the fourth and fifth seeds, respectively - will play at 10:00 a.m. on Friday morning (Apr. 28) in Findlay, Ohio.
 
Grand Valley State has played 125 games in the conference tournament since 1984, but this is the first time in the postseason that the Lakers will take on Walsh, an addition to the GLIAC a few seasons ago. GVSU earned the fourth seed by sweeping a pair of conference doubleheaders at Findlay and Hillsdale over the weekend.
 
Heading into Friday's game, the fourth-seeded Lakers are 17-8 in conference play and own a 31-13 overall record. Fifth-seeded Walsh went 16-10 in league games and is 22-14 overall in 2015.
 
GVSU and the Cavaliers met back on Mar. 29 in North Canton, Ohio, with each team winning a game. Walsh took the opener by a 4-0 final, while the Lakers rebounded with a 1-0 win in the nightcap on a walk-off single from sophomore Janae Langs. It was just the second conference doubleheader of the season for GVSU and the first league twinbill for Walsh.
 
The Lakers have won their past five GLIAC Tournament opening games, including wins over Northwood (2-1) in 2014, Findlay (3-0) in 2013, Northwood (5-1) in 2012, Northwood (2-1) again in 2011, and Wayne State (4-1) in 2009. Again, the 2010 tournament was cancelled due to inclement weather.
 
The GLIAC Tournament games will be held at Anderson Field #2 and Iriti Field #5 at the Marathon Diamonds Complex in Findlay, Ohio. Each of the past three league tournaments has been held in Findlay. Here is the schedule for the opening round of games on Friday (May 1):
 
#1 Wayne State (38-17, 22-4 GLIAC) vs. #8 Tiffin (23-21, 14-12 GLIAC) - 10:00 a.m.
 
#4 Grand Valley State (31-13, 17-8 GLIAC) vs. #5 Walsh (22-14, 16-10 GLIAC) - 10:00 a.m.
 
#3 Saginaw Valley State (28-17, 18-6 GLIAC) vs. #6 Hillsdale (23-21, 14-12 GLIAC) - 12:00 p.m.
 
#2 Ashland (36-6, 21-5 GLIAC) vs. #7 Findlay (26-21, 14-12 GLIAC) - 12:00 p.m.
 
The winning and losing teams of both sets of games will play each other in the next rounds on Friday, meaning Grand Valley State will either play #1 Wayne State or #8 Tiffin in its second game of the afternoon (at either 2:00 p.m. or 4:00 p.m.). The rest of the double elimination tournament will play out on Saturday and Sunday, with the championship game and the 'if necessary' game scheduled for Sunday (May 3).
 
GVSU's .316 team batting average is second-best in the GLIAC, while the team's 247 runs scored, 387 hits, and 231 RBI are all the third-most of any team in the league. Grand Valley State's pitchers have a team ERA of 2.41, fourth-best in the conference, while the Lakers' .961 fielding percentage is the fifth-best mark in the GLIAC.