CALEDONIA, Mich. – The Grand Valley State Lakers are champions of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) after an 80-70 win over the top-seeded Davenport Panthers Sunday (March 10) at the DU Student Center. This is the seventh overall GLIAC Tournament title for the Lakers, their first since 2008 and the third under head coach Ric Wesley. (WATCH: The NCAA Tournament Selection Show)
 
The seven-seed Lakers trailed 70-69 with just under two minutes left before going on an 11-0 run to close out the game. Jake Van Tubbergen sank a free throw to tie it before Hunter Hale buried a three on the following possession, three of his 20 points for the game. Jeremiah Ferguson, who led the Lakers with a career-high 27 points, hit a pair of free throws and from there the Lakers would coast to victory.
 
Ferguson and Hale each also had four assists and three steals while Hale yanked eight rebounds in the game. Isaiah Brock, who's dunk with under a minute to go sealed the win, finished with 10 points and eight rebounds plus a pair of blocks on the defensive end.
 
The Lakers never trailed in the first half, taking a six-point lead, 32-26, into halftime. Ferguson and Hale were each in double figures within the first 20 minutes as the Lakers kept Davenport at arm's length.
 
The Panthers would respond in the second half; though, using two separate 10-0 runs to lead by as many nine points (50-41). But Hale and Ferguson would each hit threes in response to get the Lakers back into the mix. The two sides would trade the lead seven times in the second half, plus four ties mixed in as the cross-town foes went toe-to-toe down the stretch. The Lakers would have the extra gas at the end to motor to a conference championship.
 
The Lakers, having automatically qualified for the NCAA Tournament, will find out seeding and matchups Sunday night with the selection show at 10:30 PM on NCAA.com. GVSULakers.com and all social media accounts will provide updates as they occur.