Sophomore Allison Lipovsky showed why she was named the 2017 GLIAC Pitcher of the Year, as the righthander tossed a seven-inning no-hitter on Friday afternoon (May 12) in an NCAA Tournament elimination game against Indianapolis. After also being held hitless over the game's first five innings, GVSU managed to put together the game's only run in the bottom of the sixth inning for a 1-0 postseason victory.
 
Lipovsky tallied 11 strikeouts in the win, allowing just three walks in the complete game shutout. It was the 13th time this season she recorded double-digit strikeouts, which included at least two strikeouts in four of her seven innings in the circle.
 
Grand Valley State (33-17) will now face Saginaw Valley State in an elimination contest on Friday evening, as the Cardinals dropped a 6-4 winner's bracket decision to #9 Southern Indiana earlier on Friday. Indianapolis sees its 2017 season come to a close with a 33-21 record.
 
Lipovsky's no-hitter was the first by a Laker pitcher since Sara Andrasik tossed a 6-0 no-no against Notre Dame College on March 8, 2014. It is the 18th no-hitter by a Grand Valley State hurler since the 2000 season. Lipovsky joins assistant coach Jen Rivera, who also threw a no-no in the NCAA Tournament on May 10, 2002 in a 5-0, eight-inning victory over West Virginia Wesleyan. Those are the only postseason no-hitters by the Lakers since 2000.
 
Like most NCAA Tournament games, the pitching matchup was a terrific one. Lipovsky entered the game for GVSU with a 15-4 record and over 200 strikeouts on the season. Indianapolis countered with freshman Lauren Honkomp, who did not receive any All-GLVC recognition, but came into the contest with a 22-11 record and a 1.88 ERA in 235 innings.
 
Both teams fell victim to the long ball in Thursday's opening round. All five of #9 Southern Indiana's runs in USI's 5-1 victory over GVSU came on a pair of two-out home runs in the second game. Indianapolis fell to Saginaw Valley State in the opener on a three-run walk-off homer in the eighth inning after UIndy had taken a 2-0 lead with a two-run blast in the top of the inning.
 
In Friday's matchup, home runs would not be a problem for either pitcher, as even a simple base hit was hard to come by.
 
Lipovsky found a nice rhythm early on, as the righty struck out the final two batters of the second inning and the first two Greyhounds in the third frame. She allowed a leadoff walk in the fourth inning, but GVSU catcher Jessica Ramos threw out her fifth potential base stealer of the year, delivering a nice throw with the tag applied by sophomore shortstop Shannon Flaherty. An ensuing flyout capped off Lipovsky's fourth straight hitless inning.
 
She made it five hitless frames in a row with a pair of strikeouts and a weak grounder for a 1-2-3 fifth inning, her third of the game. In the sixth inning, Lipovsky issued a two-out walk, but struck out the side for her 10th strikeout of the afternoon. That marked the 13th time this season she has reached double-digit strikeouts in a game.
 
During the opening five frames, the Lakers managed only a first inning leadoff walk from senior Janae Langs. From there, Honkomp retired the next 15 Lakers with just one strikeout during that stretch, using a variety of groundballs and outs in the air to stifle the GVSU offense.
 
Ramos delivered the game's first hit on a sharp single to right field to lead off the bottom of the sixth, then was lifted for pinch runner Kayla Plastiak. She moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt from junior Tanner Kiessel and then over to third on a single from Langs past the diving Greyhound shortstop and into centerfield. Langs stole second base on the next pitch, while junior Teagan Shomin took a hit by pitch later in the at-bat to load the bases.
 
Senior Jenna Lenza hit a hard grounder to the UIndy shortstop, who made a diving stop. She threw home, but Plastiak's slide appeared to disrupt the Greyhound catcher, who could not hold onto the ball on what would have been a bang-bang play at the plate. Plastiak ended up being safe for the game's only run, but the Lakers could not add any insurance runs, with a popup and groundout ending the frame.
 
In the seventh inning, Lipovsky finished off the no-no with a pair of flyouts and a looking strikeout to complete the victory. She totaled 11 strikeouts and three walk in her 111-pitch complete game effort. Lipovsky moved to 16-4 on the year with the win. UIndy's Honkomp dropped to 22-12, allowing just one run on two hits in a tidy 81 pitches.
 
Ramos and Langs had the games only hits. GVSU left four runners on base, while Indianapolis left two Greyhounds.
 
Laker Notes:
- Grand Valley State and Indianapolis have now met in the 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017 NCAA Midwest Regional Tournaments; the Lakers were 4-2 over the Greyhounds in the 2013, 2014, and 2016 meetings
- The then-#9 Lakers won the 2013 Midwest Super Regional championship over then-#1 Indianapolis on the Greyhounds' home field, clinching the title and a World Series berth with a 3-2 win in the decisive third game
- In 2014, the teams split two NCAA Tournament meetings, with GVSU winning the opener 8-0 before Indianapolis earned a 7-3 win the following day in an elimination game
- Grand Valley State eliminated then-#2 Indianapolis in the 2016 NCAA Tournament with a 5-4 victory on UI's home field
- GVSU is making its seventh consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and 15th overall postseason berth, all since 1999
- The Lakers are now 43-31 all-time in NCAA postseason play and have won at least one postseason game in 14 of the team's 15 trips to the Midwest Region Tournament