The Grand Valley State University women’s basketball team moved to 3-0 with a pair of wins over the University of District of Columbia and Bowie State University in Washington D.C.

After Saturday’s 73-67 win at District of Columbia, the Lakers left the nation’s capital Sunday undefeated with a 75-57 victory over Bowie State.

“Two great wins with two very different dynamics,” said GVSU head coach Janel Burgess. “Whether it was dealing with adversity or grinding out solid defensive plays—we had to find a way to stick together and we were able to do so.”

The Firebirds played the Lakers tough all game Saturday, and the two teams went back and forth for much of the first half. GVSU finally got some breathing room with 6:11 remaining after a pair of threes, and went into the locker room with a 38-31 lead.

Adversity struck with 11:34 left to play, however, when the Firebirds went on a 9-0 run and took a 50-48 lead.

“In our huddle, we were like okay … they went on their run,” said senior Alex Stelfox. “But now it’s time to go on ours.”

After tying the game up at 58 a piece, junior Kellie Watson hit her second three of the game to take a 61-58 lead. The Lakers converted eight of their last nine free-throw attempts to close the game out.

GVSU senior Briauna Taylor recorded the first of two double-doubles on the weekend, with 16 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and two blocks.

Senior teammates Lauren Stodola and Alex Stelfox also scored in double figures. Stodola scored 15 points while Stelfox added 11 and six rebounds.

Stelfox was hoping for continued momentum against Bowie State — where she grew up.

“I was a bit nervous because all of my family came to see me play,” Stelfox said.

Her nerves were calmed after hitting a jump-shot 41 seconds into the game.

“That felt awesome,” she said.

After jumping out to a 25-12 lead midway through the first half, GVSU never lost control of the game. A 7-0 run gave the Lakers a 41-26 lead at halftime.

Bowie State, however, would not accept defeat. The Bulldogs used a second-half surge to cut GVSU’s lead to only 10 points, and with time working against them, they decided to see if GVSU could stay disciplined from the charity stripe.

The Lakers, who were fouled 26 times in the game, made the Bulldogs pay with exceptional free-throw shooting—connecting on 34-of-38 attempts.

“Defensively they started to put a lot of pressure on us,” Taylor said. “But we all did a really good job of staying positive.”

Taylor picked up where she left off the day before, recording another double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds in only 26 minutes of action. She was a big reason for GVSU’s success at the line, making 14 of 16 attempts.

The Lakers will begin GLIAC play on Nov. 29 on the road against the nation’s top team, Ashland University.

“Ashland’s a great team,” Burgess said. “They’re ranked number one in the nation for a reason. Our defense is going to have to be extremely strong.”