ALLENDALE, MICH. – The GVSU women's basketball team secured their spot in Monday's Midwest Regional Championship game with an 87-54 victory over Wayne State in the semifinals Saturday night. The top-seeded Lakers advance to play the two-seeded Ashland Monday night at 7:00 in the Fieldhouse.
For the second straight game, the Lakers got out to a hot start, going up 11-4 following a
Rylie Bisballe triple. Wayne State cut it to four points at 11-7, but the Lakers responded with six straight points, bringing their lead to double-digits at 17-7. The Warriors again chipped away at the lead, cutting it down to 21-15, but a free throw and a jumper from
MacKenzie Bisballe made it 24-15 after the first quarter.
Ellie Droste buried two triples to begin the second quarter, then
Nicole Kamin nailed a jump shot, pushing the Laker advantage to 32-15. The lead grew to 20 points after a
Paige Vanstee layup, extending it to 38-18. That was part of a 16-3 run to end the half by the Lakers, as they led 46-21 following the opening 20 minutes.
A three-pointer from
Molly Anderson early in the second half made it 53-23 GVSU. Later in the quarter,
Avery Zeinstra hit a three, and the Lakers were doubling up the Warriors 62-31. They stayed up twice as much at the end of the period after
MacKenzie Bisballe tipped in a rebound with a few seconds remaining making it 66-33 going into the fourth.
The Laker lead stayed above 30 points for the entirety of the fourth quarter, peaking at 39 points following a
Sydney Cherney triple. All in all, GVSU advanced to their fourth straight Midwest Region Championship game.
Rylie Bisballe shot 9-13 from the floor to end with 19 points, four boards, and three assists.
Paige Vanstee recorded 15 points and four rebounds, with
MacKenzie Bisballe adding 11 points, five rebounds, and two blocks.
Nicole Kamin had six points and five assists.
Kathryn Schmidt had a team-high seven rebounds as part of a Laker effort to win the battle on the boards 45-23.
Up Next
The Lakers will play Ashland Monday night in the Regional Championship game. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:00.
