Senior leadership and a strong defensive performance allowed the Grand Valley State football team to earn a 21-3 victory at Saginaw Valley State on Saturday.

GVSU (6-5, 6-4 GLIAC) finishes the fall campaign with a winning record as a result, and improves its all-time series record to 33-11 against rival SVSU.

The win not only served as a parting gift to GVSU seniors as their careers came to a close, but also as the start of a new season – the offseason – which could give the team some momentum as it prepares for 2015.

“It felt great as seniors to end on a win,” said sixth-year senior quarterback Heath Parling. “I look forward to seeing what the team will accomplish in the future.”

Parling, who had six touchdowns last week in a 42-7 home win over Hillsdale, completed 10-of-25 passes for 134 yards, an interception and the final touchdown pass of his career to junior Jamie Potts in the third quarter.

On the defensive side of the ball, GVSU recorded four sacks, an interception and two forced fumbles against SVSU. Three of those sacks came from defensive linemen – seniors Isiah Dunning and Frank Boenzi and junior Matt Judon.

Running backs Chris Robinson and Terrell Dorsey had to step up for the Lakers in the defensive struggle, and both did just that by rushing for 69 and 86 yards, respectively. Dorsey sealed the deal with a touchdown in the fourth quarter, while Robinson broke the plane for the last time in his career at the 5:28 mark in the first quarter.

Robinson’s performance allowed him to take 11th place in all-time rushing yards at GVSU (2,374), passing the late Laker legend Cullen Finnerty. Robinson said his career at GVSU has been defined by how he prepared in the offseason.

“There’s always this mentality of not really wanting it in the offseason,” Robinson said. “You just have to grind through it.”

GVSU coach Matt Mitchell said the seniors’ approach to character was what allowed the team to stay strong even when things were rough this season. That seniors, like Robinson, taught the younger players how to maintain the winning culture and tradition of the program.

“Finding the right people is what gets you through the tough times,” Mitchell said. “Robinson was a leader and at the end of the season he got us the hard yardage.”

Though the seniors will no longer walk the halls of GVSU as students, new players will rise to fill their shoes and carry on the legacy of Laker football. Players like Potts, Judon and Dorsey will replace the seniors next year.

The program’s history of winning is a hallmark characteristic that sets expectations for students, alumni and opponents alike, rather high. Although the 2014 campaign may not have gone how the Lakers thought it would, it was still a winning season.