Quick Hits 11/29

Holly Bihlman, Sports Editor

Women’s Basketball adds another two wins to overall 5-0 record 

The Grand Valley State University (5-0) women’s basketball team swept both opponents this past weekend in the Rollins Classic Tournament. On Friday, Nov. 26, the Lakers defeated Rollins College (3-3) 70-39 followed by Embry-Riddle University (2-3) on Saturday, Nov. 27 in another win, 67-47.

Their first matchup started with dominating offense from the Lakers, shooting 67%  and scoring 26 points in the first quarter to the Tars’ five. The Laker’s defense forced nine turnovers in the first half of the game, only allowing an additional six points from the Tars for a score of 39-11.

The third quarter started off the same for the Lakers, advancing their lead from 28 to 32 points in the first minute. Sophomore guard Emily Spitzley led in scoring with 19 points, followed by senior guard Qay Stanton with 10 points and freshman guard Ellie Droste with seven.

Saturday’s game had a much different pace from tip off, starting with the Laker’s 18-11 lead in the first quarter. The first half included 14 turnovers for the Lakers resulting in 10 points, giving the Eagles a burst of motivation for a seven-point run to limit the Laker’s lead to three points, 30-27.

The Lakers regained their momentum, scoring an additional 10 points in the first three minutes of the half. GVSU went on to score 25 points in the third and held the Eagles to only nine, ending the game with a 20-point lead.

Droste led the team with 17 points, followed by freshman Rylie Bisballe’s 13 points and five rebounds, and sophomore forward Hannah Kulas’ 12 points and eight rebounds.

After sweeping the Rollins Classic, the Lakers look ahead to their first two matchups of GLIAC play this Thursday, Dec. 2 and Saturday Dec. 4 to face Saginaw Valley State University and Wayne State University at home.

Men’s Club Hockey secures win against Western 5-2

The Grand Valley State University Division I men’s club hockey team defeated Western Michigan University on Tuesday, Nov. 23 with a final score of 5-2. The Lakers hosted the game at Griff’s Georgetown for their first matchup against the Stallions this season.

The game started off hot with a quick goal from the Stallions, only for the Lakers to return the favor just a few minutes later to even the score 1-1. The Stallions would put one more in the net before the end of the first, but that would be their last goal of the night.

A power play for the Lakers in the second period was no help for the team, maintaining the 2-1 deficit throughout the second. It wasn’t until the third and final period of the game that the Lakers were able to score an impressive four goals evenly dispersed throughout the remaining 20 minutes of the game.

The Lakers return to the ice Dec. 3-4 for the Grand Rapids Charity Classic at the Eagles Ice Center on Friday against Davenport University and their opponent on Saturday to be determined.