BIG RAPIDS, Mich.—In the final game for the team before the 2017 GLIAC Tournament, the Lakers made quick work of rival Ferris State in Big Rapids on Thursday, using a big second quarter effort to earn a 68-49 victory. Three Lakers finished in double-digits as the team improved to 21-6 on the season and 16-5 in GLIAC play. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, end their season at 5-22 overall (4-17 GLIAC).
 
Piper Tucker led GVSU in scoring with 12 points, while Korynn Hincka and Taylor Parmley each added 10 points in the victory.  
 
Thursday's game was an eerily similar story line as the first time the teams played this season, as the Bulldogs once again hung tough with a stronger Grand Valley State squad in the first quarter of play. The teams were tied at 11-11 at the end of the first quarter on Thursday night, as Leah Humes chipped in five of her game-high 18 points in the opening half of the quarter.
 
In the second quarter, GVSU would hit back-to-back triples courtesy of Tucker and Bailey Cairnduff, and then got a Parmley layup to  take a 19-11 lead. After a jumper by the Bulldogs, Cairnduff netted another triple and Taylor Lutz drove in for a layup to give GVSU a 24-13 lead with seven minutes remaining in the quarter. Later, a pair of quick layups by Hincka after a three-point play by the Bulldogs keyed a run for GVSU. Her layups were followed by a Cairnduff triple, a free throw by Jenn DeBoer and a Tucker triple to close out the half on an 11-0 run and take a 37-16 lead into the halftime break.
 
In the third quarter, the Lakers would score first on a Lutz layup, which was then followed by three straight Ferris State baskets to trim the lead to 39-22.  The Lakers then went on a 7-0 run of their own to extend the lead back to 24 points, 46-22 with 5:21 remaining in the third quarter. After back and forth play between the two teams in the final minutes of the half, a jumper by Cassidy Boensch to end the quarter gave GVSU a 54-31 lead heading into the final quarter of play.
 
Ferris State would outscore the Lakers 18-14 in the fourth quarter, but would not get closer than 17 points the rest of the way. GVSU ended the game shooting 27-65 (41.5 percent) from the field and 6-20 (30 percent) from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, ended 21-54 (38.9 percent) from the field and 2-10 (20 percent) from beyond the arc. GVSU cleaned the boards well on the day, outrebounding Ferris State 44-34, and held a 30-22 advantage in points in the paint.