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Grand Valley State will have a rematch to kick off its 14th NCAA Tournament appearance in school history, as the Lakers open up play at the Midwest Regional Tournament on Thursday afternoon (May 5) in Indianapolis, Ind. At 2:00 p.m. ET, GVSU will face Southern Indiana in an opening round contest in a rematch of the 2015 NCAA Tournament's first round game.
 
For the second consecutive year, Grand Valley State is the #4 seed in the Midwest Region, while Southern Indiana is the #5 seed for the second year in a row. The Lakers bring a 37-10 record into the four-team sub-regional tournament; USI owns a 35-19 record entering the NCAA Tournament.
 
While GVSU and Southern Indiana square off at 2:00 p.m., the other opening round contest on Thursday pits top-seed and host school Indianapolis (50-3) facing eighth-seeded Trevecca Nazarene (43-15) at 4:30 p.m. Not only is Indianapolis the #1 seed in the region, but the Greyhounds are the #2 team in the latest NFCA Top-25 national poll, released Wednesday morning (May 4).
 
Interestingly enough, not only did Grand Valley State square off with USI in last year's NCAA Tournament opener, but Indianapolis and Trevecca Nazarene were also first-round opponents last year, as well. The Lakers and Screaming Eagles were tied at 2-2 in the 2015 opener in St. Louis, Mo., before Southern Indiana notched a pair of seventh-inning runs to win, 4-2. Indianapolis defeated Trevecca Nazarene by a 3-1 score in eight innings in the opening game, then UIndy came back two days later to again top the Trojans by a 4-3 final to win the sub-regional championship on its home field.
 
Here is the schedule in the four-team sub-regional at Indianapolis this weekend:
 
Thursday, May 5
 
Game 1 - 2:00 p.m. - #4 Grand Valley State (37-10) vs. #5 Southern Indiana (35-19)
 
Game 2 - 4:30 p.m. - #1 Indianapolis (50-3) vs. #8 Trevecca Nazarene (43-15)
 
Friday, May 6
 
Game 3 - 11:00 a.m. - Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner
 
Game 4 - 1:30 p.m. - Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser
 
Game 5 - 4:00 p.m. - Game 3 Loser vs. Game 4 Winner
 
Saturday, May 7
 
Game 6 - 3:00 p.m. - Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5
 
Game 7 - 5:30 p.m. - 'If necessary' game (same teams as above)

The other sub-regional tournament is being held in St. Louis, Mo., as #2 seed Missouri-St. Louis is the host school. UMSL (52-7) will face seventh-seeded Maryville (37-14) in the opening round. The first game in that bracket is between #3 seed Wayne State (46-7) and sixth seed Truman State (30-18).
 
Grand Valley State went 21-5 in GLIAC play, earning a regular season runner-up finish. As the second seed in the 2016 GLIAC Tournament last weekend, the Lakers dropped the opening game to Findlay (5-0) on the Oilers' home field before bouncing back to defeat Hillsdale (6-3) later Friday afternoon (Apr. 29). GVSU's tournament run ended with a 3-1 loss to Ashland on Saturday morning (Apr. 30).
 
Closing the regular season with a 13-game winning streak, the Lakers' 37 victories are the 13th-most in school history. GVSU's 21 wins in GLIAC play this season are fourth-most by a Laker team. Grand Valley State owned a 13-1 home record, went 9-6 in true road games, and was a strong 15-3 in neutral site games. While the Lakers and Southern Indiana squared off in last season's NCAA Tournament, the teams did actually meet up earlier this regular season.
 
On Mar. 8 in Clermont, Fla., GVSU earned a 3-2, 10-inning victory over the Screaming Eagles in a pretty solid pitcher's duel. The Lakers' Sara Andrasik allowed two runs in nine innings before giving way to freshman Allison Lipovsky, who worked a 1-2-3 inning to close out the game in the 10th. USI's Haylee Smith surrendered three unearned runs in 9.1 innings, but it was junior Mari Deppe's run-scoring single in the 10th that scored freshman Shannon Flaherty for the winning run.
 
In the game, Southern Indiana actually outhit the Lakers 8-6, while both teams committed a pair of errors. Deppe was the lone GVSU player with multiple hits; she was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Flaherty, sophomore Teagan Shomin, and junior Ellie Balbach each collected a base hit. All six of the Lakers' hits were singles; Southern Indiana tallied six singles and two doubles.
 
It was another great battle last season in the NCAA Tournament between the Lakers and the Screaming Eagles. USI scored first with a run in the second inning off of GVSU starter Courtney Reinhold. In the bottom of the frame, Shomin smacked a solo homer and the Lakers took a 2-1 lead in the same inning on a bases-loaded walk to Kelsey Dominguez. Southern Indiana answered with a run in the third inning to deadlock the game at 2-2.
 
Both teams were retired in order in their next two at-bats and the game was still tied until USI plated the winning runs in the top of the seventh inning on a two-run single. The Lakers went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the seventh to end the contest. GVSU also dropped its next game in last year's tournament, falling to GLIAC champion Wayne State by a 3-0 margin.
 
18 of the 19 players on last year's Laker roster returned this year and put together a tremendous regular season. GVSU had its most All-GLIAC honorees and its largest group of First Team selections since the 2013 team advanced to the College World Series. Three infielders - senior first baseman McKenze Supernaw, junior second baseman Jenna Lenza, and sophomore catcher Kaylie Rhynard - along with Balbach (as a designated player) were chosen by the league's head coaches to the All-GLIAC First Team. Lenza and Balbach repeated as First Team selections from last season, while Supernaw was a Second Team honoree in 2015. It was the first such award for Rhynard.
 
Andrasik and Lipovsky were both named to the All-GLIAC Second Team, while junior centerfielder Janae Langs and Flaherty, the freshman third baseman, received Honorable Mention plaudits. Lipovsky also became the fifth Laker ever - and fourth in the last seven seasons - to earn the GLIAC Freshman of the Year award. She went 10-1 in the regular season with a 0.85 earned run average and allowed just 50 hits and 10 earned runs in 82.2 innings. Lipovsky has a team-high 75 strikeouts.
 
Lipovsky is one member of a strong pitching staff for the Lakers. Andrasik leads the team with a 12-3 record and owns GVSU bests in innings pitched (91.1), appearances (22), and saves (four). Reinhold is 8-4 with a 2.76 ERA and has walked just eight batters in 78.2 innings in the circle. Balbach, the only lefty on staff, went 7-2 with a pair of saves and has logged 76.0 innings, in addition to her hitting duties.
 
Offensively, Balbach leads the Lakers in batting average (.367), hits (58) and doubles (15) and is second in homers (four) and RBI (34). Lenza is hitting .348 with 13 doubles, a GLIAC-high 25 walks, and 30 runs scored, second-most on the team. Rhynard leads GVSU with 31 runs, is a perfect 19-for-19 on stolen bases, and is hitting .346 with the second most hits (54) as the team's starting catcher.
 
Supernaw paces the Lakers with team-bests of seven homers and 36 RBI, in addition to 13 doubles, a .306 average, and a fielding percentage of .987 after moving from third base to first base this year. Langs is hitting .355 and has scored 17 runs in 24 games after joining the team in late-March after being named Most Outstanding Player in the Midwest Region Tournament, as the Laker women's basketball team advanced to the NCAA Final Four.
 
Flaherty hit .287 as a rookie, notched four of the team's nine triples this year, and has totaled 29 RBI and 25 runs in her first year. Dominguez is also batting .287 and has recorded 37 hits, 15 runs, and 14 RBI as the starting left fielder. Shomin ranks second on the team with a .417 on-base percentage thanks to her 16 walks and 12 hit-by-pitches, extending her GVSU career record in that category. She is third on the team with 29 runs scored.
 
Grand Valley State has made 13 previous appearances in the NCAA Tournament, also nabbing a postseason berth in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015. The Lakers are 36-27 all-time in NCAA Tournament play, including a pair of trips (2002 and 2013) to the Division II College World Series. This is the sixth straight appearance in the NCAA postseason, tying the school record of six consecutive berths from 1999 to 2004. Last year's 0-2 record in the tournament was the first time GVSU did not win at least one game in its 13 trips to the NCAA postseason.
 
While Southern Indiana is 1-0 against the Lakers in the postseason, GVSU owns a 3-2 edge in the NCAA Tournament against Indianapolis. That includes two wins in a best-of-three series over the Greyhounds in the 2013 Super Regional (also in Indianapolis), when GVSU toppled #1 UIndy and advanced to the College World Series for the second time in school history.
 
The Lakers have never faced Trevecca Nazarene in NCAA Tournament play, but Grand Valley State did defeat the Trojans earlier this season down in Florida by a 4-3 final. Lipovsky struck out 11 batters in the complete-game victory and Flaherty gave GVSU an early lead with a two-run triple. GVSU led 4-0 before the Trojans notched three runs in their final at-bat. Both teams had just four hits in the contest.
 
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