CALEDONIA, Mich. -- The Grand Valley State Lakers rallied for three runs in the ninth inning and brought the go-ahead run to the plate, but their comeback fell short in a 14-12 loss to the Davenport Panthers in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) action Saturday in the opener of a four-game set on the campus of Davenport University. Ryan Blake-Jones delivered four hits and three RBI in the loss. The Lakers fall to 16-12 on the year and 5-4 in conference play while the Panthers move to 16-11 on the year and 6-3 in conference play.

The Lakers pounded out 20 hits Saturday compared to 11 knocks by the Panthers, but GVSU left 13 runners on base and committed five errors in the defeat. Five Lakers had multiple hits in the game; Blake-Jones led the way with four while Austin LaDoux and Ricky Clark had three hits apiece and Josh C. Smith and Alex Mandeville both had two hits. Zach Berry launched a home run for GVSU in the game as well. Jake Mason suffered the loss for the Lakers despite not allowing a hit nor earned run in 3.2 innings of work.

The see-saw affair saw the Lakers plate a run in the first inning, only to see the Panthers respond with a pair of runs in the home half. GVSU plated two more runs in the second to jump back in front, but the Panthers scored three on the home side. The Lakers would later rally for five runs in the fifth inning to tie the game (9-9) before Davenport regained the lead with a run in the bottom of the inning. Zeros would be posted on both sides until the eighth inning, when Davenport scored four insurance runs. GVSU scored three times in the ninth and got the go-ahead run to the dish but could not complete the rally. The Lakers and Panthers resume action Sunday in a doubleheader in Caledonia.