Five GVSU basketball players compete in All-Star Game

The Grand Valley State men’s and women’s basketball programs were well represented in the selection for the ADDIX Basketball Champions All-Star Games Wednesday, March 29, at Davenport. Bailey Cairnduff, Kayla Dawson, Taylor Lutz and Piper Tucker were all selected for the women’s game while Juwan Starks represented GVSU in the men’s game.

The top seniors from the GLIAC, Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference and the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association were selected for the teams. The annual event was founded in 2007.

The four players from the women’s team played on the Team Stripes squad, or the ‘East’ team. Playing alongside the four Lakers were players from Hope, Calvin and Kalamazoo College with Hope’s Brian Morehouse as the head coach. Team Stripes faced off against Team Stars (West team) which included players from Spring Arbor, Siena Heights, Davenport and Cornerstone.

Starks represented GVSU in the men’s game on Team Stripes, coached by Hope’s Greg Mitchell. Team Stripes was also comprised of players from Hope, Calvin, Alma, Kalamazoo College and Ferris State. The opposing team, Team Stars, featured players from Cornerstone, Indiana Tech, Lawrence Tech, Aquinas, Davenport and Grace Bible.

The event raised funds in support of Davenport athletics and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Club sailing finishes fifth in Freshmen Icebreaker Regatta

The Grand Valley State sailing club competed in the Freshmen Icebreaker Regatta hosted by Notre Dame Friday, March 24. The Lakers finished fifth out of nine fleets that competed in the event.

Freshmen Sam Colvin, Joe Kurta, Ryan Harrower and Jacob Weesies all participated in the event along with junior Nick Smart. The Lakers faced off against other Michigan schools including Western Michigan, Michigan and Hope College, but inexperience was not the only obstacle GVSU faced during the event.

The weather conditions during the race were not conducive of sailing. The fleets battled unusually high winds along with rain. The races were also postponed for several hours because of lightning.

The next event for the club is the Laker Showdown which is hosted by GVSU and Hope College at the Macatawa Bay Yacht Club in Macatawa, Michigan. GVSU will host teams from across the region in this regatta Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2.

GVSU dodgeball club finishes weekend undefeated

In the final tournament before the national tournament, the Grand Valley State dodgeball club recorded a perfect 3-0 record at “The War” tournament hosted by Akron’s dodgeball team.

The No. 1-ranked Lakers faced off against Ohio in the opening game of the tournament. GVSU handled Ohio 5-1 before facing off against Michigan State.

The Spartans proved to be a tough out for the Lakers as they took a two-point lead after the first half. The Lakers battled back in the second half to force the game into overtime. GVSU eventually prevailed in a 3-2 win.

In the final game of the weekend, the Lakers cruised to a 2-0 victory against Virginia Commonwealth to cap off a perfect weekend before the national tournament.

The Lakers will look to win their fifth consecutive national championship and ninth in the club’s history at the national tournament at the University of Kentucky. The NCDA Nationals will take place Saturday, April 8, and Sunday, April 9.