BIG RAPIDS, MICH. – The first game of GLIAC play pitted two nationally ranked teams, and the two best teams in the conference, as the #1 GVSU women's basketball team took on the twentieth-ranked Ferris State Bulldogs. The game did not disappoint, but the Lakers showed why they are the top-ranked team in the country, as they lead wire-to-wire, pulling out a 78-70 victory to move to 6-0.
 
Grand Valley dominated the first quarter, holding the Bulldogs scoreless until the 3:35 mark in the period, leading 11-2, led by five early points from Nicole Kamin. A three from the Bulldogs cut it to 11-5, but the Lakers ended the quarter on an 9-0 run to lead 20-5 after 10 minutes of play.
 
Both offenses heated up in the second quarter, with the two teams combining for 48 points in the period. GVSU was able to attack the rim early in the quarter, getting layups from Paige Vanstee, Ellie Droste, and Hadley Miller to lead 30-18 with five minutes left. GVSU continued to get buckets at the rim after the media timeout, and a late layup from Vanstee gave the Lakers a 42-31 lead going into the locker room at the break.
 
Ferris State got out on an 11-2 run to open the second half to cut the lead down to two points at 44-42. The Lakers responded with a 4-0 run with two free throws from Droste and a layup from Vanstee. After trading baskets for most of the remaining quarter, the Bulldogs once again cut the lead to two points after a three-pointer. GVSU got it right back as Hannah Kulas buried a triple with three seconds remaining in the quarter to give the Lakers a 57-52 at the end of the third quarter.
 
After Ferris once again got it to two points, Abrie Cabana scored four straight points to bring the lead back up to six at 61-55. After Hannah Kulas drilled two free throws, the Bulldogs hit a three to bring their deficit to five points, but that was a close as they would get the rest of the game. The Lakers continued to attack the rim and draw fouls, making two layups and six free throws in the final four minutes to ice the game and pick up the win in the conference opener.
 
Paige Vanstee came up huge off the bench, scoring 15 points on 7-9 shooting and pulling down six boards. Hannah Kulas hit nine free throws en route to scoring 14 points, while also grabbing a team-high eight rebounds. Ellie Droste hit all seven of her free throws as she scored 13 and Nicole Kamin had 11 points and four rebounds. As a team, the Lakers made 25 of 31 free throws and held Ferris State to just 17% shooting from deep.
 
Up Next
Grand Valley stays on the road in the second game of conference play this Saturday as they head across the bridge and take on Lake Superior State at 1pm.