CALEDONIA, Mich. – The No. 2 Grand Valley State Lakers wrap up the 2019 regular season as they look for an undefeated Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference campaign in the finale at the Davenport Panthers Friday (Nov. 8) at 4:00 PM. The Lakers sit 15-1 overall, 8-0 in GLIAC play and have pitched 12 consecutive shutouts.
 
A win or draw for the Lakers Friday clinches an outright GLIAC regular season championship, of which the Lakers have already clinched at least a share. A draw or loss by the Ashland Eagles would also give the Lakers an outright championship. Regardless of Friday's outcomes, the Lakers have already locked up the top seed in the GLIAC Tournament, but are still vying to keep their current No. 1 seed in the Midwest region
 
Grand Valley State is ranked first in all of Division II in both scoring average (4.31) and goals against average (0.19). Individually, the Lakers have three of the top 26 in Division II in points-per-game; Ava Cook (10^th, 2.44), Riko Sagara (16^th, 2.25) and Chantel Carranza (26^th, 2.06). Jessica Radice is second in the nation with 11 solo shutouts, second individually with a .207 goals against average and 19^th in the nation with a 0.875 save percentage.
 
"The girls have worked hard to get to this point and our reward is we control our own destiny for a regular season championship," said head coach Jeff Hosler. "Our players and coaches have done a great job of taking things day-by-day and focusing on the task ahead. That continues this week with our full focus on Davenport before turning to the post-season."
 
The Panthers, under first-year head coach Paige Eli, have seen tremendous growth since the Lakers beat them 7-0 back on October 6 in Allendale in non-conference action. The Panthers are 4-2-2 in GLIAC play and currently sit in fifth place in the conference. A win Friday, coupled with a loss or draw by Ferris State, would put the Panthers in position to host a GLIAC Tournament quarterfinal on Sunday. The hungry Panthers also should be confident, taking No. 11 Ashland to overtime on the road last Sunday.
 
"I talked before our first meeting this year about how much respect I have for Paige as a coach, and she has proven worthy of that praise," said Hosler. "Davenport has continued to take steps forward this season and are growing into a dangerous opponent that wants to further prove themselves on Friday."
 
A trio of Panthers lead the way with three goals apiece this season while redshirt-senior Ashlyn Skidmore also has three assists for a team-best nine points. Freshman goalkeeper Samantha Beckles has started all 15 matches for Davenport and has made 76 saves this season. She made seven saves in the Ashland match Sunday to keep the Panthers level with the Eagles through regulation. She also made eight saves in the match in Allendale this year.
 
With the post-season looming, the Lakers still have to earn at least one more point to guarantee themselves an outright GLIAC regular season title. The conference championship coming down to the final day proves the strength of the league which, so far, GVSU has come through unscathed. They hope to use this momentum to finish the regular season strong and carry over into post-season play, which begins Sunday with the GLIAC Quarterfinals. Stay tuned to GVSULakers.com and @GVSUSoccer on Twitter for all the news and updates as they happen.