ALLENDALE, Mich.— The Grand Valley State women's basketball team got back to winning ways on Thursday night at GVSU Fieldhouse Arena, dispatching northern rival Lake Superior State in resounding fashion, 77-42. Grand Valley was led in the effort by Kayla Dawson's 26 points, which vaulted her into coveted ground as a member of GVSU's 1,000 point club. Lindsay Baker chipped in 12 first half points, and Janae Langs and Taylor Parmley each added 11 for Grand Valley, which improved it's record to 18-6 on the season, and 13-5 in the GLIAC.
 
Lake Superior State began the game with a quick five points after GVSU foundered on it's first two possessions. Dawson got the Lakers on the board with eight and half minutes left in the first quarter, and after a LSSU layup made the margin 7-2, Taylor Lutz hit a triple to bring the score to 7-5. Lindsay Baker would then add triples with 5:42 left and 4:21 left in the quarter to open up an 11-7 lead for Grand Valley. Bailey Cairnduff hit a jumper, Dawson added a free throw and then Cairnduff hit another jumper, and the lead was 16-7 with two and a half minutes left in the first. GVSU wasn't finished, however, and after LSSU hit a jumper to cut the margin to 16-9, Dawson would hit a jumper and a layup on consecutive possessions to cap off the 15-2 Laker run to end the quarter, up 20-9.
 
In the second quarter, the two teams went back and forth with buckets. After  aLangs jumper opened the scoring, LSSU would answer with a layup by Mackenzie Edwards, two of her team high 23 points in the game. Lindsay Baker would hit a triple on the next possession, only to have it answered by a triple from Edwards to bring the score to 25-14. Taylor Parmley would hit a triple of her own, followed by a jumper on the next possession, pushing the score to 30-14. Edwards would  add another triple with five minutes left in the quarter, but that would be the final score for LSSU in the half, as they scored just eight points in the second quarter. GVSU would rattle off 12 unanswered points to end the quarter, entering halftime with a 42-17 lead.
 
At the break, the GVSU Lakers had built up a 25 point lead by shooting 57.7 percent from the field, and 50 percent from beyond the arc.  Lake Superior had turned the ball over eleven times, which GVSU had turned into 16 points in turn. Bench scoring favored Grand Valley by a wide margin, 19-0, and Grand Valley had not relinquished the lead once taken in the first quarter.
 
In the third quarter, Grand Valley let the foot off the gas, and Lake Superior took advantage, outscoring GV 20-17 in the third frame. Baskets from Dawson and Langs kept things mostly even, but a jumper by Mackenzie Edwards cut the lead to 18 points with under four minutes left in the quarter, before the Lakers closed out the quarter on an 11-7 run to enter the final quarter with a 59-37 lead.
 
By the fourth quarter, Grand Valley's focus had shifted towards Dawson and her proximity to the 1,000 point milestone. While the crowd remained largely unaware of the occasion, Dawson's continued presence on the court with the game in hand showed a determination to reach the golden number of 26 points needed to join the club, and with a pair of free throws with 1:56 left in the game, the goal was reached, and her 1,000^th career point saw her become the 23^rd Grand Valley women's basketball player to do so. Dawson also tied a career high with five steals in the game, and added four rebounds.
 
Grand Valley would finish the game 26-56 (46.4 percent) from the field, and 9-20 (45 percent) from beyond the arc, while holding LSSU to just 34.1 percent (15-44) from the field and 5-16 (31.3 percent) from beyond the arc. By holding the Lakers under 50 total points, GVSU has now held 15 of their opponents below that mark this season.
 
The Laker are back in action this Saturday, as they hit the road for a matchup with Northwood, 85-56 winners against Ferris State on Thursday. Tip off is set for 4 p.m. at Riepma Arena in Midland, Michigan.