Grand Valley State University’s women’s basketball team blew Ohio Dominican University out of the water during their Senior Day game on Saturday, Nov. 8. The Lakers beat the Panthers 94-43, showcasing their dominance.
The team has been victorious this season, with a current undefeated record of 4-0. With high stakes from their previous 31-3 season, the pressure is high. Redshirt freshman Maya White commented that despite mounting pressure, the team manages to keep its momentum.
“The energy the team gives each other really helps us keep going, and we’re all supportive,” White said. “We have a saying, ‘next play mentality,’ so whatever happens, a mistake (0r) a mess up, we just keep it going (with) ‘next play mentality.'”
The Lakers managed to keep their momentum going against Ohio Dominican, with the Lakers steamrolling the Panthers.
This game was especially important for the team, with it being their Senior Day game. Before the game, the team paid homage to its senior and graduating players Hadley Miller, Ellie Droste, Rylie Bisballe, Abrie Cabana and Kathryn Schmidt.
In the first quarter, the Lakers wasted no time scoring. A little more than a minute in, Bisballe blasted through the Panthers’ defense to score a layup, which was assisted by Abrie Cabana.
Less than four minutes in, the Lakers found themselves with a 12-point lead over the Panthers. However, Ohio Dominican pushed back soon after, slicing through the Lakers’ defense, and allowing Panther Macy Chapman to score a layup. This brought the score to 12-2.
The Panthers began to get desperate and fouled the Lakers, sending them to the line to score two easy points. Not even a minute later, the Panthers scored two back-to-back layups from Shannon Wojciak and Sarah Ochs, making the score 15-6.
The Panthers’ momentum didn’t last long before the Lakers completely shut them out. For the remainder of the quarter, the Lakers were unstoppable. They shut the door on the Panthers for the rest of the quarter by maintaining an impenetrable defense.
At the end of the first quarter, with just four seconds left on the clock, Laker Avery Zeinstra glided to the rim to score a layup, ending the quarter with a 15-point lead, 21-6.
The Panthers started the second quarter hot with an early layup by Logan Pride. However, their momentum was quickly cut short. Zeinstra couldn’t miss, with two back-to-back 3-pointers scorching the nets. Zeinstra helped bring the Lakers’ lead to 19 points, 27-8.
With a relentless offense and impenetrable defense, the Lakers buried the Panthers with an astounding 25-point lead by the end of the quarter. The team pushed the score to 46-21.
Beginning the third quarter, the Lakers were quick to the paint, taking advantage of openings in the Panthers’ defense to score a layup. The Panthers followed this up with a jump shot by Meghan Mayotte.
The Lakers immediately struck back. With the hoop locked in, Droste nailed a 3-pointer for the Lakers, giving them a 24-point lead.
GVSU maintained an over 20 point lead over the Panthers until a 3-pointer by Laker Lexi Plitzuweit pushed the team to a 27-point lead. At this point, the score was 61-34. After Plitzuweit’s three, the Lakers’ lead only began to soar.
By the end of the third quarter, the Lakers held a 34-point lead over the Panthers, 70-36.
GVSU had an explosive start to the fourth quarter by dropping 11 consecutive points on the Panthers. Their defense was a brick wall, keeping the Panthers from the net for the first five minutes of the quarter.
With the clock winding down, there was no chance of catching up for the Panthers. With 43 seconds left on the clock, White pushed through the Panthers’ defense to score a layup. Sydney Cherney followed that up with a 3-pointer, with only eight seconds left on the clock. By that time, the Panthers’ fate was sealed, and the Lakers won with a show-stopping 51-point lead and a final score of 94-43.
GVSU junior Megan Crow emphasized that the team doesn’t plan on slowing down anytime soon.
“I think (we) just want our team to succeed, and push each other every day in practice to get better,” said Crow.
