Tournament Central

INDIANAPOLIS – The No. 21 Grand Valley State Lakers venture into unchartered territory as post-season play begins in 2019, going on the road for the final site of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament for the first time in program history. The 2-seeded Lakers will face the 3-seed McKendree Bearcats, the team that has ended GVSU's season each of the last two years, in the semifinals Friday (May 3) at 7:00 PM on the campus of the University of Indianapolis, who won the GLIAC regular season.
 
The Lakers have won either the regular season or conference championship every season since the GLIAC incepted women's lacrosse in 2013 and have hosted the final site of the conference tournament every year prior to 2019. Under a new head coach and graduating 11 seniors from a year ago, the Lakers have remained in contention with a 13-3 regular season record and 10-1 GLIAC mark – their only conference loss coming on the road to Indianapolis.
 
Since that loss, the Lakers have rattled off seven straight victories, six of which have come by double figures. This run began with a 17-5 win over McKendree in the Lakers' home opener (the tenth game of the season). Sarah Stagaard led the offensive attack that day with five goals while Kelley Fitzgerald set the GVSU record for assists in a single game with eight. It was a fast start that fueled that win for the Lakers, who held a 10-1 lead at halftime before coasting to victory.
 
The Lakers have used a balanced attack to keep opponents guessing this season. Ten different Lakers have scored double-digit goals in 2019. Carly Shisler leads the way with 57 while Abbi O'Neal scored 40 despite missing two weeks with an injury in the middle of the season. Fitzgerald has 61 points – behind only Shisler's 77 – with 16 goals and 45 assists, the GVSU single-season record, on the campaign.
 
The Bearcats are on a four-game win streak of their own, downing Northern Michigan 26-10 in the Tournament quarterfinals on Tuesday. McKendree enters Friday 11-6 overall and they went 9-3 in the conference with two losses to Indianapolis and the defeat by GVSU. McKendree averages 15.8 goals per game and have seven different players that have scored more than 20 goals this season, led by 46 from Hannah Sugarman. Emily Nelson has scored 44 goals and dished 46 assists for a team-best 90 points on the year.
 
The Lakers will look for another quick start against McKendree as they begin post-season play. GVSU is currently fifth in the NCAA Midwest Region rankings. The top four teams from the region will qualify for the NCAA Tournament, so there is plenty on the line as the Lakers look to keep their season alive. Knowing McKendree has ended GVSU's season each of the last two years should be even more motivation as the team looks to advance to Sunday's championship game.