vs. Saginaw Valley State (Saturday, Jan. 6th – 3:00 PM)
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The Grand Valley State women's basketball team continues GLIAC play out of the holiday break with a 3:00 PM matchup against Saginaw Valley State (3-10, 3-3 GLIAC) on Saturday, Jan. 6. The Lakers, who most recently took down the Northwood Timberwolves on the road, 73-55, are winners of five straight and have accumulated a 12-2 record and a 5-1 mark in conference play. The Lakers are currently tied with Michigan Tech for first place in the GLIAC North Division as well as second place in the overall standings, which is led by Ashland (14-0, 6-0 GLIAC). In the latest WBCA Coaches poll – released on January 3rd – the Lakers received votes and are sitting just outside of the top 25.
 
The final score of the Lakers 73-55 victory over the Timberwolves on Thursday (Jan. 4) comes off as slightly deceiving when just looking at the final score. At the end of each quarter, the Lakers never lead by more than five points and for most of the game, the teams were within just one or two possessions of each other. Everything changed when the fourth quarter came around however as GVSU found another gear and wound up outscoring the Timberwolves 21-7 in the final stanza. In that final quarter, the Lakers held the Timberwolves without a made shot for the final eight minutes and fifteen seconds of the quarter and only allowed two points (on two free throws) the rest of the quarter.
 
Much of the Lakers success in the fourth quarter came from sophomore Maddie Dailey. Dailey, who posted a career-high 17 points in the contest, scored eight of those points in the fourth and went an impressive 5-7 from beyond the arc in the contest. After posting the best game of her career last Saturday (Dec. 30), Cassidy Boensch kept her hot streak going, this time scoring 16 points while picking up 4 blocks and five rebounds. The center was also 7-7 from the charity stripe. Also posting solid a solid game was junior Natalie Koenig and senior Korynn Hincka, as they tallied 14 and 13 points, respectively.
 
So far this season, senior Taylor Parmley has led the Laker offense with 12.9 points per game while shooting 49.2% from the floor and also pulling down 6.4 rebounds. Sophomore guard Jenn DeBoer ranks second on the team in scoring as she is averaging 12.7 points while also leading the team in made 3-pointers (30) and assists (55). Hincka and Koenig are both also averaging 10+ points a contest, sitting at 10.9 and 10.6 points per game, respectively.
 
As a team, the Lakers continue to boast one of the best defenses and one of the best deep attacks of any team in the GLIAC. The Lakers are allowing their opponents' to score just 57.9 points per game, which ranks first and the GLIAC and 32nd in the entire nation. Additionally, opponents are shooting just 38.7% from the floor and 26.0% from 3-point, which ranks third and first in the GLIAC, respectively. When the Lakers aren't shutting down their opponents offenses, they are usually making it rain from deep, as they lead the GLIAC in 3-pointers made, 3-pointers made per game, and rank third in 3-point percentage at 35.5%. 
 
Saginaw Valley State got off to a rough start to the 2018 season after dropping their first eight contests but seem to have found their identity as of late, as they have won three of their last five games. The Cardinals wins have all come against GLIAC opponents in Lake Superior State, Ferris State, and most recently Purdue Northwest. On the season, the Cardinals are averaging 58.3 points on offense while giving up 69.1 points on defense.
 
Both Laurel Jacqmain and Abby Duffy are averaging double figures for the Cardinals this season, with Jacqmain leading the way with 10.6 ppg while Duffy isn't far behind at 10.2 ppg. Not far behind those two is Hannah Settingsgaard who is averaging 9.8 points a game. Duffy, along with Anna Hall, are the Cardinals top two rebounders as the pair are averaging 6.2 and 6.0 rebounds per game, respectively.
 
Following the Lakers matchup with SVSU, they will travel down to Ohio for a couple of games against Ashland and Tiffin. The game against Ashland is set for a 5:30 PM tip on Thursday, Jan. 11, while the matchup with Tiffin is set for 3:00 PM on Saturday, Jan. 13.