ST. PAUL, Minn. – The No. 20 Grand Valley State Lakers open Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play this weekend with a road swing to Concordia-St. Paul on Friday (March 15) at 5:00 CT (6 ET) and Northern Michigan Sunday (March 17) at 12:00 ET. The Lakers swept both teams last season.
 
GVSU is off to a 3-2 start this season, dropping a pair of tightly contested contests to fellow nationally-ranked teams last week in Colorado. Ten different Lakers have scored this season, including nine players with multiple goals.
 
Carly Shisler earned GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. Shisler, who was dominant on draw controls and caused five turnovers, also scored six goals and contributed three assists on the week. Abbi O'Neal leads the team in goals (17) and points (21) to start her junior year while Sophie Conroy has dished a team-high nine assists early in her sophomore campaign.
 
A third-year program, Concordia-St. Paul appears to have taken a big step forward this year, beginning the season 3-2. Their losses came at No. 4 Lindenwood and a one-goal loss to CSU-Pueblo. Maddie Hentges has led the way offensively, scoring a team-high 10 goals and six assists for 16 points. Lexi Stanley has won 17 draw controls and caused four turnovers on the year to help keep their opponents average under 10 goals a game. Katie Lottsfeldt and Claire Hagen have split time between the pipes so far this year for the Golden Bears.
 
Northern Michigan opened the season with a convincing win over Albion but have dropped three matches since, most recently to Lake Erie, 18-17, in overtime. Jessica Daniels has scored 16 goals and Graison Ringlever has 11, to go along with 21 draw controls, to lead the offense while freshman Aleya Speas has scored nine goals early in her career. Cam Stilson, a freshman, has been the lone goalie used by the Wildcats so far this season.
 
The Lakers, who were picked to finish second in the GLIAC this season, embark on conference play with one of the longest road trips of the conference season. Fresh off a trip to Colorado, the Lakers are racking up the miles in the early stages of 2019. They look to keep racking up wins, too.